By BRENDAN MCGAIR

Sports writer

CUMBERLAND — As expected, Woonsocket High defended its Cumberland/Lincoln Boys’ & Girls’ Club Tournament, rolling past Tolman, 75-51, Saturday night at Cumberland High School’s Wellness Center.
MVP selection Antjuan Jones finished with 17 points, seven assists and six steals. Backcourt mate Lee Vazquez amassed 12 points, four assists, two steals and two blocks. Tolman, which was without leading scorer Nick Fontaine, was led by senior captain Allens Etienne (15 points, 12 rebounds).
As Woonsocket head coach Kyle Ivey-Jones declared, the Villa Novans will go as far as Vazquez and Jones can carry them. The next test comes this Tuesday when Woonsocket welcomes St. Raphael in a makeup of the Dec. 19 snow out.
“I think arguably, in my opinion, that I have the best backcourt in the state,” said Ivey-Jones.
Another key to the Novans’ chances this season is the health of starting center Nathan Geter. Playing on a sprained ankle, Geter finished with nine points, seven rebounds and four blocks. “He gutted it out, so I give him credit for that,” said Ivey-Jones. “He’s coming off that injury, so he’s working his way back into shape. He’s not getting as fast as I would like, but he’s coming along.”
Ivey-Jones views the tilt with the Saints as one of strength versus strength. “We’ve got to keep an eye on (leading scorer) Avery King and see what type of role players they have. The problem is that (SRA) has to match up with us. I don’t look at it as we have to match up with them, they have to match up with Geter in the middle and be able to contain Lee and Antjuan on the wings.”
Woonsocket sprinted out to a 27-8 lead as Tolman was never able to recover. Point guard Rodney Batillo continues to make a strong impression, collecting nine points and dishing out five assists.
“Our guys know they didn’t do a good job of doing what they were supposed to do,” said Tolman head coach Mike Kayata, whose squad is off until Jan. 7 (at defending Division II champ Classical). “We’re young, we’ve got first-year varsity players and it’s a difficult scenario. We’re coming, but we don’t have the firepower currently.”
In consolation game, Cumberland squeaked past Lincoln, 62-60. The game-winner came when Cole Bentley stuck back a shot with 11.7 seconds remaining, breaking the deadlock.
Down 35-29 at halftime, the Clippers fought back to take a 10-point lead with under twp minutes remaining. The Lions stormed back courtesy of two 3-pointers from Ethan Cloutier and one from Ryan Musket, which tied the score at 60.
Cumberland’s Alex Ogilvie led all scorers with 23 points while Adrian Oliveira pumped in 14. Cloutier was Lincoln’s high man with 17.
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Championship Game
TOLMAN (51): Rhshaan Sam 1 1-4 5, Vladimir Alcindor 2 0-0 4, Eric Spranger 1 0-1 2, Chris DosSantos 3 0-0 7, Jeremy Graca 1 0-0 3, Stephen Zetina 1 0-0 2, Allens Etienne 6 3-4 15, Rodney Butillo 4 1-2 9, Julio Andrade 0 0-0 0. Totals: 19 5-11 51.
WOONSOCKET (75): Antjuan Jones 8 0-0 17, Lee Vazquez 5 1-4 12, Jose Merced 1 3-3 5, James Suber 2 0-0 4, Wilfredo Olmeda 2 2-4 6, Semir Hasukio 4 0-0 9, Nathan Geter 4 1-1 9, Tron Griffith 1 0-0 2, Isaiah Scurry 4 1-2 9, Kelly Desimpalo 1 0-0 2. Totals: 30 8-11 75.
Halftime: W 34-21.
Three-point field goals: T 3 (Chris DosSantos 2, Jeremy Graca); W 3 (Lee Vazquez, Antjuan Jones, Semir Hasukio).

Consolation Game
CUMBERLAND (62): Alex Ogilvie 7 8-8 23, Ryan Innarelli 1 3-3 5, Adrian Oliveira 5 1-2 14, Joe Vecchio 0 0-0 0, Evan Patrick 4 0-0 8, Matt Wentzell 0 0-0 0, Cole Bentley 5 1-4 12, Brian Bradley 0 0-0 0. Totals 22 13-17 62.
LINCOLN (60): Steve Ricci 6 0-0 14, Zach Trenteseaux 3 5-6 11, Matt Sorkin 1 0-0 2, Ethan Cloutier 5 2-2 17, Ryan Musket 4 0-2 10, Mike Aranji 1 0-0 2, Jeff Anderson 2 0-2 4. Totals 22 7-12 60.
Halftime: L 35-29.
Three-point field goals: C 5 (Adrian Oliveira 3, Alex Ogilvie, Cole Bentley); L 9 (Ethan Cloutier 5, Steve Ricci 2, Ryan Musket 2).

All-Tournament Team
Zach Trenteseaux (Lincoln), Allens Etienne (Tolman), Alex Ogilvie (Cumberland), Lee Vazquez (Woonsocket), Wilfredo Olmeda (Woonsocket).