Bessette's career game ignites Rice boys basketball's comeback to topple St. Johnsbury
SOUTH BURLINGTON ― The Rice Memorial High School boys basketball team trailed by 10 points multiple times in the first half vs. St. Johnsbury on Thursday night.
Rice didn't flinch.
When the game tightened, Rice went basket for basket with St. Johnsbury during lead-changing third and fourth quarters.
Rice welcomed the momentum swings.
And when it came time to seal the heavyweight showdown between the state's top-ranked teams, Rice blitzed the visitors with a signature run.
Rice's difference-maker through all 32 minutes? The team's veteran leader, Drew Bessette.
The 6-foot-8 Bessette poured in 22 first-half points, to save the Green Knights from an even bigger freefall, and finished with a career-high 36 to power his squad to a 79-64 victory over St. Johnsbury at Bill Hammond Gym in arguably the biggest Division I boys hoops game prior to the start of playoffs.
"He can go for 36 or he could go for four and it’s the same (look). That’s what I love about him," Rice coach Paul Pecor said of his star's measured demeanor.
Bessette, bound to the University of Vermont men's basketball team in the fall, drained five 3-pointers, his fifth triple igniting a 15-0 spurt as Rice (15-1) closed out the Hilltoppers (13-3) for a regular-season sweep and maintain its undefeated mark against in-state opponents.
"We knew we had a great chance of winning this game and we executed well. We did everything we were supposed to do," Bessette said.
According to Pecor, Bessette has "deferred a lot more than I want him to" this season, to get teammates involved and for the bigger prize of reclaiming the state championship trophy following last year's runner-up finish.
"He knows for us to win (a state title), everybody has to step up. It can’t be the 'Drew Show' because that’s probably not going to be the show that ends up winning it," Pecor said. "He's sacrificed a lot, but then in games like today he was like, 'No, I have to step up, this is my time and I have to do this.’ It was great to see that extra bounce I saw out of Drew."
Said Bessette: "I’m not going to force anything. I’m going to look for the open guy, of course, because I want them to score as well. But if it’s there, I’ll shoot it."
Out of the gate Thursday night, St. Johnsbury played like the team with more desperation and purpose.
Rex Hauser, who missed the teams' first matchup with an injury, splashed a game-opening 3-pointer to kick-start the Hilltoppers' 12-2 spurt. SJA's matchup zone caused Rice early issues with turnovers, and the Hilltoppers' transition game, fronted by Harry Geng, was in full effect for most of the first half.
St. Johnsbury led 19-14 after the first quarter and held advantages of 26-16 and 28-20 in the second period.
"It’s hard to simulate the pressure (Hauser and Geng) provide with how athletic they are," said Pecor, complimenting St. Johnsbury's star duo. "We had a lot of bad turnovers, but the panic button wasn’t there. It was more about staying the course and valuing the ball."
Rice started to find passing windows against SJA's defense, and exploited those holes for easy layups. Bessette, meanwhile, scored from multiple spots beyond the arc and on putbacks or unselfish feeds from teammates. His catch on a lob and three-point finish drew the Green Knights to within one before Geng's driving layup made it a 36-33 SJA halftime lead.
"I feel like we trust each other really well. We run the plays through, we don’t force anything and that’s what has led to all the points we’re scoring right now," Bessette said of not getting rattled by the early deficit.
Bessette opened the second half with a wing trey and the hosts took their first lead on Grant Cieplicki's foul shot, 37-36, with 6:26 left in the third. From there, the lead changed four times with one tie: Rice's Owen Eaton and Hauser traded 3s, Bessette landed a three-point play on a putback and Geng swiped a breakaway to level the game at 51.
Rice took a 53-51 margin into the fourth following a Bessette layup.
"His length is just a problem for us," SJA coach Patrick Rainville said. "He had quite a night tonight and he did it both inside and out."
The lead changed sides three more times to start the fourth, with Kerrick Medose's strong take giving SJA a 58-57 advantage midway through the frame.
Then Bessette and Co. put the game out of reach.
Bessette rattled in his fifth 3-pointer, followed by an Evan Eaton 3-point splash to engineer the aforementioned 15-0 run. Cieplicki added a driving lefty layup and Evan Eaton came off a screen to drain his third trey and push Rice to a double-digit lead, 70-48, with 3:30 to play.
"My biggest thing was, we wanted to wear (SJA) down in the fourth quarter and I thought we did," Pecor said. "I thought their shots looked shorter and we started switching guys to give different looks and I thought it paid off in the fourth. But it wasn’t looking good in the first half."
Geng and Hauser finished with 27 and 23 points, respectively. Medose added 10 points for SJA.
"We know that we needed to get better quality looks in that stretch when they pulled away," Rainville said. "Obviously, credit to them, but I feel like our shot selection wasn’t the greatest. When you are playing a team like that, those possessions are pivotal."
Evan Eaton (14 points), Cieplicki (12) and Owen Eaton (10) joined Bessette in double figures for Rice, which has yet to peak, according to Pecor.
"The goal from the very beginning is, we always want to get better. I think we are on the track, and right now we are starting to play pretty good basketball," Pecor said. "I don’t think we’re there yet."
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Contact Alex Abrami at aabrami@freepressmedia.com. Follow him on Twitter: @aabrami5.
This article originally appeared on Burlington Free Press: Vermont high school boys basketball: Rice rallies past St. Johnsbury
