BURLINGTON — The sixth-seeded Brattleboro Colonels fought valiantly to the end in the Division I boys' basketball semifinals, but second-seed Rice played on another level from start to finish, eliminating the Colonels and their title hopes on March 6 at the University of Vermont's Patrick Gymnasium, 76-49.
Rice is the defending Division I state champions and they played like it from the opening tipoff. The Green Knights got off to an 11-0 lead in the first minutes of play. Cam Frost and Tristan Evans got into early foul trouble and Rice shot 50 percent from the field to take a 19-8 first quarter lead.
Brattleboro had a better second quarter thanks to senior Paul McGillion. McGillion scored 11 points (17 total) and got contributions from Frost and Tate Chamberlain with five points apiece. The Colonels out-rebounded Rice as well (13-12) in the first half, but containing Rice's top players was a monumental task.
Drew Bessette hit four three-pointers (he was the game's high scorer with 25 points) while Owen Eaton hit two (he finished with 10 points) and the Green Knights led 42-29 at halftime.
Tristan Evans scored on a break-away layup to bring the score to within 10 points, but Rice was always one step ahead. The Green Knights shot 7-for-15 in the fourth quarter (47 percent) and never looked back. Evans fouled out and Rice had the game well in hand with minutes to play.
Chamberlain finished the game with 15 points. Frost scored seven. Jordy Allembert and John Haskins scored four points apiece and Evans had two. The Colonels end the season with a 14-10 record.
“It came down to momentum,” said Brattleboro coach Jason Coplan after the loss. “(Rice) made some late runs that took the wind out of our sails toward the end, but I'm proud of my kids. They showed that they belonged (in the semis) and they could play.”
Rice advances to their 35th Division I championship game, tying Burlington for most all-time finals appearances. It's Rice's fourth straight final and their 13th in the last 17 years. Rice is now 35-23 all-time in semifinals, while Brattleboro is 4-12.
However, the loss to Rice doesn't diminish what the Colonels did to advance to the semifinals. In one of the most improbable playoff wins in their recent history, the Colonels - on the road against third-seeded St. Johnsbury on March 2 - upset the Hilltoppers, 50-48, in a hard-fought quarterfinal game that wasn't decided until the last minute of regulation.
After Brattleboro regained possession on a missed shot by St. Johnsbury, Frost burned up 30 seconds of clock by dribbling out the ball. Waiting patiently, he made a pass into the middle. The ball went back into Frost's hands and he scored with a layup.
Brattleboro committed a foul with 11 seconds left. The Hilltoppers' Henry Geng made the second of his two free throw chances to cut the Colonels' lead to 49-38. Evans was fouled not long after that. He went to the line, hit his second free throw, and the Colonels were back up by two.
Geng took a last-second shot with 0.8 left on the clock. The ball hit the front of the rim as the buzzer sounded. The Colonels escaped with a huge win over a team most observers thought would be hard to beat at home.
“We knew we were a pretty evenly matched team (with St. Johnsbury), we just had to come out stronger (than last time),” McGillion said, referring to their 36-27 loss to the Hilltoppers on Jan. 7.
McGillion led the Colonels with 15 points. Chamberlain scored 11 points, while Frost added 10, Haskins chipped in seven, and Allembert and Evans scored four and three points, respectively.