Manchester Central boys basketball beats Nashua South to finish regular season 18-0

NASHUA – The Manchester Central High School boys basketball team may have finished the regular season undefeated, but there are still things coach Doc Wheeler believes his team can work on to get better.

But after Tuesday night’s win over Nashua South, it might be hard for the Little Green to figure out what those things are.

Central was perfect from the field in the first quarter, going 13 for 13, taking control of the game in the first two minutes and never looking back in an 86-62 win over South. The win gives Central an 18-0 mark for the regular season and it will be the No. 1 seed when the Division I tournament begins on March 4.

“What we’ve talked about is trying to continue to get better,” Wheeler said. “There are certain weaknesses that we’ve had that we’re trying to work on. I think if you’re focus is on getting better, than the wins will come.”

The Green couldn’t have been much better against the Panthers (9-8). Central got out to an 8-0 lead and went up 30-9 before the end of the first quarter. The lead was 28 points at halftime and stretched to as many as 41 before South closed the gap late in the third and fourth quarters.

“That’s a very, very good basketball team that shares the ball, defends well, runs the floor,” South coach Nate Mazerolle said. “I don’t know if they’re unbeatable, but they are pretty darn good. We thought we were prepared and we weren’t.”

Brett Hanson led Central with 20 points and Jon Martin had all 19 of his points, including five 3s, in the first half. Joey Martin also had 13 points and Dawson Dickson hit three 3s for nine. As a team, the Green made 12 3-pointers, eight of which came in the first half.

The Panthers got 20 points from Yordy Tavarez, but no other regular for South had more than six. Daniel Frechette had seven points in the fourth quarter.

“As I told my guys, what I wanted them to take from that game, that’s an 18-0 basketball team that is the favorite to win the whole thing, and they may be the most unselfish, best passing team I’ve ever seen,” Mazerolle said. “They don’t care who scores. The ball touches the floor rarely and they can all shoot, obviously.”

South found that out in a first quarter that Wheeler believes is the best he’s ever seen one of Central teams play.

“As long as I’ve been coaching, I don’t know if I’ve ever seen anything like that,” he said. “I’m proud of how they come out and play hard right off the bat. I thought they shared the ball real well.”

That ability to play unselfish is one thing that has set this version of the Green apart from others and their competition.

“It’s huge,” Wheeler said. “How do you break teams down? It’s a lot easier to break them down passing the ball versus dribbling the ball. It’s my 24th year at Central and that’s not unique message. What’s unique is that the players have listened to the message and they go execute on the court. It’s very special and I’ve never seen it this good before.”

Central opened the game with an 8-0 run on two free throws by Hanson and a 3-pointer each by Dickson and Jon Martin, forcing Mazerolle to take a timeout under two minutes into the game. South got on the board after that, but the Green then went on a 10-2 run, bookended by a 3-pointer from Joey and Jon Martin, respectively.

Mazerolle took another timeout, but there was little the South coach or his players could do. The lead ballooned to 21 before the end of the first quarter and Central led by 28 point at halftime.

“They play at a pace … we think we’re a running team, and at times we have been,” Mazerolle said. “That’s a running team that understands how to play fast. Maybe I’m too stubborn and foolish, but we had talked about it at practice, and I don’t want to change our identity because we want to play that pace. It certainly didn’t work, so I’ll have to rethink that.”

Central took its largest lead early in the second half, going up 71-30, but South ended the third quarter on a 10-5 run to close the gap to 26 points going to the fourth.

South has one game left to head into the postseason on a high note. The Panthers will host Londonderry on Friday at the Chestnut Street Gym at Elm Street Middle School. It’s the first time the Panthers will play a game there since the split.

“We’re going there to practice (Wednesday),” Mazerolle said. “I’ve been told the floor is a little slick, so I’m worried about what the floor is going to look like. That’s my biggest concern. To be honest, it’s a great structure and a great gym, it just needs a little tender loving care.”