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By ERIC BENEVIDES Sports writer PAWTUCKET --- If Tolman High hopes to jump into the thick of the race for the Division II-North title, the Tigers are going to need strong defensive performances like the one they displayed on Tuesday night at home against crosstown rival Shea High.
The Tigers claimed their third straight division game, and like their last two victories, they held their opponent to 40 or less points. Against the Raiders, the Tigers helped force the Raiders to commit 29 turnovers and held them to just eight points in the final 10:20 of play en route to a 59-38 victory.
“Forty (points) has been the magic number, and tonight, we were hoping to hold (Shea) to under 50 because they’re a very good team,” added Tolman coach Mike Kayata, whose ballclub is now 3-2 in the league (5-5 overall). “Defense has been a team effort. We need all five guys to know their roles and responsibilites on defense, and I thought our guys did a great job.”
While the Tigers’ defense stole the show, the quietest player on the ballclub, senior center Allens Etienne made a lot of noise with one of his best efforts of the year. Etienne scored the Tigers’ first 12 points of the night and ended up with a game-high 24 points and 19 rebounds.
“Allens is a beast,” said Kayata. “Allens gives us everything he’s got every time he’s on the floor. He’s the model player for Tolman High School. He’s a great competitor, he brings it every night, he’s not afraid of his matchups, and whatever he does, he does it with class.”
The Raiders, who came into the game with victories in three straight games and five of their last six, dropped to 4-1 in the division (6-4 overall) and fell out of a tie for first place with Classical High, no thanks to arguably one of their worst showings of the seasons.
“We got our butts kicked,” added Shea coach Greg Barker. “(Tolman) did a very good job defensively and we just didn’t do anything right. We couldn’t play our game, we couldn’t get the ball down the court quick enough, and you have to give them credit -- they got back on ‘D’ and they prevented us from getting into any kind of offense. It was not a good night.”
The night didn’t get off to a good start for the Raiders, who quickly scored the first basket of the game, only to watch Etienne produce the next nine in the paint. Shea quickly cut its deficit to three, but Tolman eventually upped its lead back up to nine (23-14) thanks to a pair of wide-open three-pointers from junior guard Chris DosSantos.
“We haven’t been in that situation all year,” said Barker. “In all the (league) games we’ve been in, we’ve been either ahead or right there, and tonight, I don’t think we really reacted correctly at the beginning (of the game) when we were down (by a 9-2 score). Our guys were kind of flat.”
The Tigers’ lead remained nine points (29-20) at the break, and the Raiders never got closer than seven (35-28) to the Tigers in the second half. Shea was down by eight (38-30) with 10:20 to play, but Tolman responded with an 11-4 run to put the game out of reach with 7:25 on the clock.
“This was about bragging rights,” admitted Kayata. “They beat us twice last year and we knew that whoever won (this game) could brag until the next game. We knew that in order to gain some respect, we had to win this game because we haven’t gotten any. But we’re climbing back into the Division II race, and if we continue to play defense this way on a game-by-game basis, we’re going to be tough.”
While Kayata (whose crew only turned the ball over 16 times) was pleased with Etienne’s play, he also offered praise for the play of two sophomores. Rahsaan Sam came off the bench to tally 10 points, and point guard Rodney Bustillo added nine points and seven assists.
“Rodney Bastillo was a real key to running our offense tonight and Rahsaan Sam came in and picked up the pace and played really well,” added Kayata.
Senior center O.J. Whitaker led the Raiders’ offense with 13 points. Junior forward Kelvin Walker and junior guard Malcum Moniz, who each averaged over 15 points during their team’s win streak, were hounded by their hosts for most of the night and each concluded the game with eight.
“We were prepared for Malcolm and Kelvin,” remarked Kayata. “We had a defensive gameplan and we executed it to a ‘T’.”
“It wasn’t a very good night for us, but it’s over,” said Barker. “It’s just one game. We’re still 4-1, we’re going to come out and practice hard tomorrow, and then get after Warwick Vets on Thursday.
“Our guys are obviously disappointed because it’s a crosstown rivalry, but like I said, it’s just one game. We’re still a very good basketball team -- we just didn’t show it tonight.”
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