Westford Academy Boys’ Basketball dropped their first game of the season, losing 51-37 against Leominster at home on Tuesday, Dec. 12.
It was a tale of two halves for WA. Consistent offense and solid defensive pressure allowed for a competitive first half. After going into halftime up by two points, WA came out flat on both the offensive and defensive end of the floor, resulting in Leominster outsourcing the Ghosts by 16 in the second half.
“The pregame adrenaline ran out and we got tired. Because Leominster’s pressure was relentless, it was a recipe for disaster,” head coach Christopher Bramanti said. “We lost focus and stopped trusting the system.”
With that being said, the first half of the game was very competitive basketball. Over the course of the first three minutes, sophomore Teddy Hirbour scored four points and senior Nick Russo compiled three blocks, providing sparks on both the offensive and defensive end of the floor.
Junior Vishal Rampur then extended WA’s lead to 10-2 and forced Leominster to call a timeout by knocking down a three-pointer and completing another three point play after an and-1 layup.
After the timeout, WA’s full-court press defense continued to leave Leominster without any answers on the offensive end, but sloppy turnovers by WA provided Leominster with a couple easy offensive opportunities, cutting WA’s lead down to 10-8. A much needed putback layup by Hirbour extended WA’s lead back up to 12-8 as the first quarter came to a close.
WA came out with energy in the second quarter, fueled on offense by junior Andrew O’Brien. Another layup by Rampur followed by a three from O’Brien helped WA increase their lead to 17-10.
Leominster then put the pressure back on WA’s offense after converting an and-1 but O’Brien answered the call with another made jumper, making the score 19-13.
About halfway through the second quarter, WA’s offense suddenly became stagnant, resulting in several costly turnovers. These turnovers fueled a 7-0 run by Leominster, allowing them to take control of their first lead of the game.
WA then finally put an end to Leominster’s run after another made three-pointer by O’Brien and a layup from junior Nate Pitts. One more bucket from Leominster before the end of the half sent the teams in the locker rooms with WA holding onto a mere 24-22 lead.
Both teams came out flat in the second half, resulting in a scoreless first couple minutes littered with turnovers. Eventually, a Leominster and-1 and three-pointer broke the scoreless streak, which was then answered by four straight points from Rampur.
With a 30-28 lead halfway through the third quarter, Leominster’s offense took off. Leominster drilled back-to-back threes along with another bucket in the paint to extend their lead to 38-28. A layup from Rampur off of an inbound put an end to Leominster’s run as the quarter came to a close, but WA was still facing an eight point deficit heading into the final quarter.
“I feel that Leominster came out in the second half aggressive and we were playing passive,” Russo said. “They ended up taking over the game late in the third and we did not have enough to get back in the game.”
Over the course of the first three minutes of the fourth quarter, Leominster refused to let up. Two buckets in the paint along with another make from beyond the arc put WA at a 14 point deficit. Rampur continued to keep WA in the game, scoring another four straight points, bringing his total to 18 on the night, but Leominster’s lead was still 11.
A big block by Hirbour gave WA a rare second half fast-break scoring opportunity, but another stalled possession from WA followed by a fast-break layup for Leominster put it out of reach for WA with only two minutes remaining. Two more layups from Leominster before time expired officially put the game to bed, handing WA a 51-37 loss.
“Going into next game I think we all need to throw away our egos and play as a team because that is the only way we are going to win,” Russo said. “We also need to have better chemistry on offense and know where to set up.”
WA’s next game will be at 7:30 pm on Friday, Dec. 22 at home against Billerica Memorial.
