Boys Basketball: Seekonk's offense explodes in season-opening win

SEEKONK - It took four quarters of basketball for Seekonk boys coach Alex DaLuz to find the answer to the team’s main mystery.

“I think one of the biggest question marks for us coming into the season was would we be able to score, who was going to score for us,” he said following Seekonk’s 71-55 season-opening victory over Blackstone Valley Prep Mayoral Academy Wednesday night. “I don’t know how many times last year we scored 71 points, if ever. I think those questions were answered a little bit tonight.”

The starting lineup of Kyle Blanchard, Jake Barreira, Kameron Casala, Nathan Clarke and Elijah Leonard combined for 67 of the team’s 71 points as the group hit from inside and outside all night long.

“It’s going to be a committee. We have five or six guys who can be part of that committee rather than relying on one or two guys to score,” DaLuz said. “It was a great team effort offensively.”

Blackstone Valley battled throughout the game, but everytime the Pride got close, Seekonk responded with a run to give the Warriors some breathing room. The Pride held a 5-4 advantage early before the Warriors took a 10-point lead with an 11-0 run in the first quarter. Blackstone took another lead, 27-26, with 1:07 left in the first half, but the Warriors closed the half with a 7-0 run for a 33-27 lead at halftime.

The dagger run came in the fourth quarter. The Pride put together some baskets to trail by six entering the final frame, but the Warriors opened the fourth with a 17-4 run to put the game away.

“It seemed like, all of a sudden, it was a six-point game and then it exploded into an 19-point lead,” DaLuz said of the fourth-quarter run. “It’s nice to know we have some firepower this year.”

The Warriors (1-0) begin the South Coast Conference schedule on Friday at Old Rochester.

REPORTERTODAY.COM MVP: Clarke was a force inside and outside for the Warriors. The junior forward finished with a game-high 21 points, including making a trio of three-pointers. “He’s a guy that we had high hopes for since he was in the eighth grade,” DaLuz said. “He came to varsity right away as a freshman. Last year we were trying to figure out the best spot for him, guard or forward. This year is kind of the same thing, except he’s good at both positions. He’s shooting better, attacking the rim, hitting free throws, blocking shots and rebounding. He’s going to be immense for us this year.” Clarke’s work on the glass was not lost on Blackstone Valley coach Kevin Payette, saying he was “an animal on the boards.”

SCORING DUO: Juniors Kyle Blanchard (16) and Jake Barreira (15) combined for 31 points, including six three-pointers, as part of the Seekonk offensive explosion in the season-opener. “I took this job when they were sixth-graders and I said ‘I can’t wait to have these guys,’” DaLuz said. “They both played a lot for us last year as sophomores and now are stepping up as juniors. We’re going to rely heavily on them.” Both attacked the rim and got to the free-throw line, where any coach would be happy with their combined 9-for-9 performance from the stripe. “They’re really tough,” Payette said of Blanchard and Barreia. “We knew that coming in and knew we had to watch them and they still had a really good night.”

HOT FROM DOWNTOWN: Seekonk made 12 three-pointers on the evening, and DaLuz said he was happy with the shot selection. “Most of the guys have the green light as long as they’re good shots,” he said. “We have a lot of guys who can shoot, as evidenced by the 12 threes. I’m really happy with how we played tonight.” Joining Clarke, Blanchard and Barreira with three-pointers was Casala, who made three of them.

QUICK HITS: Blanchard had the highlight of the night in the second quarter. The Pride closed the deficit to 18-15 when Blanchard hit a three from the corner and got fouled. He made the free throw for the rare four-point play that sparked a 6-0 run to give the Warriors some breathing room. … Senior Kevin Moskowicz didn’t get on the scoresheet, but he played solid minutes with tough defense and some rebounds in his time off the bench. … Seekonk’s bigs made their presence felt. Senior captain Elijah Leonard manned the middle for most of the game and had six points and several rebounds while hitting both of his free throws. Matt Norris also battled in the middle and gave the student section in the SHS gym a big reason to cheer. He turned to the student section after a basket and flexed, getting a loud ovation from the crowd. … Speaking of the student section, the Warrior faithful were loud throughout, and it was very noticeable to DaLuz. “It’s great when you have a good crowd like we did tonight,” he said. “In years past, we didn’t always have that good of a team or a lot of fans. Now, we’re out here putting up 70 points. Hopefully, we’ll get some buzz and more fans will come and rally behind us.” … Xavier Mendez led the Pride with 18 points on the night. Blackstone Valley is a public charter school in Cumberland, R.I. that plays in Div. 3 of the Rhode Island Interscholastic League. “I really try to schedule as many early season games as I can against Massachusetts teams or those we don’t see often and our opponents don’t see. It’s good competition,” Payette said. “We’ve got work to do and I think the film will show some of the things we’re not seeing in practice. It’ll give us good stuff to build on.” … DaLuz is assisted on the coaching staff by Sean Smith, Ryan Eaton and Cady DeBlois. … Every Warrior got into the game except Aidan Culpan, who is out with an injury. … Kudos to the old-school musical selection at SHS basketball games, and to the awesome scorekeepers.

SEEKONK 71, BLACKSTONE VALLEY PREP MAYORAL ACADEMY 55
Blackstone Valley  11 16 17 11-55
Seekonk                 18 15 17 21-71
Scoring
Blackstone Valley: Sory Traore 10, Kalil Fofana 6, Christopher Rodriguez-Gonzalez 14, Daniel Garcia 4, Jadin Cornelio 3, Xavier Mendez 18.
Seekonk: Kyle Blanchard 16, Jacob Barreira 15, Kameron Casala 9, Nathan Clarke 21, Matt Norris 4, Elijah Leonard 6
3-point goals: Blackstone Valley- Sory Traore 2, Xavier Mendez 2; Seekonk-Kyle Blanchard 3, Jacob Barreira 3, Kameron Casala 3, Nathan Clarke 3.