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History on the line as rivals Wareham and Bourne battle in Div. 4 state title game

Laurie Los Lee, The Standard-Times
·7 min read

WAREHAM — You better believe the Wareham boys basketball team will be ready for rival Bourne in Sunday’s MIAA Div. 4 state final at the Tsongas Center in Lowell.

The top-seeded Vikings suffered a 10-point loss to the No. 2 Canalmen on Jan. 26 on their home court. Every day since then, the scoreboard during Wareham’s practices has displayed the final score (71-61) of that game.

“Since we lost, it’s been up there every practice,” said Wareham head coach Steve Faniel. “It’s just a constant reminder we can get beat on any given night so when we come out here on this practice floor we need to be focused and we need to play with energy. We need to understand that we need to be ready every time we come out here.

“It wasn’t a reminder that we’d see them again. I knew that we might, but it’s just a reminder that every time we go out there we have to be at our best.”

The final score of Wareham's loss to Bourne from Jan. 26 has been displayed on the scoreboard at every Vikings' practice since it happened.
The final score of Wareham's loss to Bourne from Jan. 26 has been displayed on the scoreboard at every Vikings' practice since it happened.

Since that loss — the Vikings’ third of the season — Wareham has reeled off 11 straight wins to get a chance to defend their 2023 state title — a goal they set the moment they walked off the court in Lowell following a 66-40 win over Springfield International.

“It means everything to us,” said Wareham senior Diego Mello. “We’ve built it up until this point. We’ve come this far.”

Wareham has a shot at making history on Sunday by becoming just the area’s third basketball program to win back-to-back state titles. New Bedford High won two straight from 1992-93 and 1993-94 while Fairhaven captured back-to-back between 1949-50 and 1950-51.

“It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” Wareham senior Ajay Lopes said. “We’re not just doing it for us. We’re doing it for the whole community and the whole school. If we do it, it’s going to be awesome and something to remember.”

Wareham's Ajay Lopes lays it in.
Wareham's Ajay Lopes lays it in.

Road to the state final

With Wareham no longer in the South Coast Conference, the Vikings stacked their independent schedule with games against the top teams in Massachusetts and beyond. They faced La Habra (California), East River (Florida) and Franklin (Massachusetts) during the KSA tournament in Orlando in December and also played the likes of Millbury, Charlestown, Bishop Feehan, Bishop Hendricken, Bourne and Old Rochester among others.

“All three teams (Bourne, La Habra and Franklin) that we lost to are in the state final and two teams (Old Rochester and Charlestown) we beat are in a state final so that just goes to show you what our schedule was like and how long we’ve been preparing for this,” Faniel said. “We’ve been playing good teams all year preparing for this game. We’ll see if that preparation works out for us.”

After finishing the regular season with a record of 18-3, the battle-tested Vikings won their first three playoff games against No. 32 Cohasset, No. 17 Maimonides School and No. 8 Lynn Voc-Tech by an average of 46.6 points per game. Wareham eked out a thrilling 67-65 overtime win over No. 4 Millbury in the state semifinals.

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After winning their first 11 games, Bourne suffered its first and only loss of the season to Old Rochester 56-52 on Jan. 23. Since then, the Canalmen have won 12 games in a row, including four straight in the playoffs against No. 34 Roxbury Prep Charter (94-49), No. 15 Monomoy (61-53 OT), No. 10 David Prouty (71-46) and No. 6 Burke (71-60) to reach a state final for the first time in school history.

“I thought we had some big holes to fill from last year losing our leading scorer and sixth man, but we had three guys step up to take over the scoring," said Bourne head coach Scott Ashworth. "They’ve all elevated from last year which is nice to see.”

Wareham's Antoine Crosson powers his way to the basket.
Wareham's Antoine Crosson powers his way to the basket.

Scouting report on Bourne

Seniors Nate Reynolds and Mike Dankert both surpassed 1,000 career points as juniors and have been the focal point of Bourne’s offense in 2024. Reynolds averaged 20.7 points during the regular season while Dankert averaged 17.2 PPG. Senior Leo Andrade is third in scoring with 16.4 PPG. Senior Dominic Quelle chipped in with 9.2 PPG while junior Quinn Moriarity averaged 5.3 assists per game.

“They’re a big, physical team so they brought a physicality to us that we didn’t necessarily match,” Faniel said of their regular season meeting. “We’re going to have to be physical and we’re going to have to stand up and be tough. We can’t be pushed around like we did last time.”

Lopes agreed, “We need to get back on defense and rebound the basketball. We have to do our thing and run. Last game we played their game. It’s going to be different this game.”

Wareham's Diego Mello presses the attack.
Wareham's Diego Mello presses the attack.

Scouting report on Wareham

The Vikings feature a fast and athletic team that goes deep on their bench every game.

For Wareham, it all starts with Lopes, a two-time Standard-Times Boys Basketball Player of the Year. The senior point guard not only led the Vikings in scoring with 16.5 points per game during the regular season, he also averaged 6.3 assists while knocking down 35 3-pointers.

Sophomore guard Aaron Cote connected on 45 3-pointers while averaging 11.5 PPG. Seniors Diego Mello (10.6 PPG) and Antoine Crosson (10 PPG and 8.1 RPG) have also made big contributions as well as senior sixth man Jayce Travers (9.2 PPG and 45 3-pointers).

“I think they shoot the ball extremely well from the perimeter,” Ashworth said. “They play at a speed that is very difficult to replicate in practice and they have the experience of being together and doing it last year.

“It’s going to take 32 minutes of Bourne high school basketball. We’ve got to defend, rebound and run.”

Wareham's Jayce Travers hits the baseline three.
Wareham's Jayce Travers hits the baseline three.

‘Battle of the Bay’

Located just nine miles apart, Bourne and Wareham high schools share a longstanding rivalry that will be showcased on the biggest stage Sunday.

“It’s grown through the years,” Ashworth said. “ I think it’s going to be a great atmosphere. It’s going to be great for the players on both sides.

“I think this is what high school sports are about. You have two programs that respect each other, but will go out and play the game right and play the game hard.”

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Because the communities are so close, many of the players grew up competing with and against one another.

“They have some guys that are from Wareham,” said Mello, noting that Andrade and Quelle are from Wareham. “We grew up playing with them. I know this game means a lot for us and for them too. I feel like they want nothing more than to beat us and we want the same too.”

This rivalry is so big that even the casual high school basketball fan will take notice.

“I think it’s really big for the community,” Travers said. “It’s going to be a pretty packed game. Everybody is going to come out, even people that don’t really watch basketball just for the fact that it’s Wareham vs. Bourne.”

If you go …

What: Div. 4 State Final

Matchup: No. 1 Wareham (22-3) vs. No. 2 Bourne (23-1)

When: 2 p.m. on Sunday

Where: Tsongas Center at UMass Lowell

Tickets: Available at the Tsongas Center website 

Follow: @SC_Varsity on Twitter for updates

This article originally appeared on Standard-Times: Preview of the MIAA Div. 4 state final between Wareham and Bourne