No. 1 Putnam Science wins heated battle against St. Thomas More
OAKDALE – The St. Thomas More prep basketball team is always the gritty underdog now whenever national power Putnam Science Academy makes a visit to the old barn on Cottage Road.
The analogies are there for all to see. The Chancellors are that talented Patriot League team looking to acquire a feather in their cap by knocking off the Mustangs, a Big East behemoth. Or the Chancellors are in the same vein of Princeton and the Mustangs are like UNLV during the Jerry Tarkanian years.
Still, Putnam coach Tom Espinosa, who guided the Mustangs to national championships in 2018 and 2020, knows it’s never easy going up against the Chancellors and legendary coach Jere Quinn.
“Road games are road games, they are always tough but there is nothing like coming here because Jere always has his team playing as hard as they can,” Espinosa said. “They always play hard. That’s just the bottom line.”
The in-state prep rivals met again on Friday night and the Mustangs ball-hawking defense proved to be the difference in their 81-69 victory.
“They forced us into 23 turnovers,” Quinn said. “Their guards really dominated our guards. I don’t think our guards were prepared for the intensity that their defensive stuff brought and it was frustrating for us because we couldn’t get into what we wanted to do.”
Quinn was referring to Mustang guards Arturo Dean (16 points), Dashon Gittens (11 points), who is headed to Florida International, and state players Desmond Claude (New Haven) and Norwich’s Darryl Simmons, Jr., who each chipped in seven points.
St. Bonaventure bound forward Barry Evans (Baltimore, MD) led the Mustangs with 20 points, including six straight points that sparked a key 10-0 run early in the second half.
Espinosa, however, wasn’t happy with his team’s shooting performance. The deep and undefeated Mustangs, who routinely subbed in five players at a time, are outscoring their opponents by 38 points per game this season.
“Our best offense was dunks and layups,” Espinosa said. “We didn’t make any mid-range jump shots. We didn’t shoot the ball well from 3. We didn’t play great offensively. We need to do a better with that.”
Leading 47-46, the Mustangs converted three straight turnovers into fastbreak hoops from Barry that included a pair of dunks.
“We cut it to one and then we turn it over three times in a row,” Quinn said.
The Chancellors (11-4) got within 68-62 late in the second half on a pull-up jumper from 6-1 guard Kyle Carlesimo (Seatlle, WA) and a pair of free throws from 6-9 center Jonathan Beagle (Hudson Falls, NY).
But Putnam answered with a 7-0 spurt, fueled by a three-pointer from Simmons, and led 75-62 with 3:01 remaining.
Carlesimo led all scorers with 26 points, including draining four 3-pointers that kept the Chancellors within striking distance. Guard Joseph Berry (Topeka, KS) netted 14 points, while Beagle finished with 10 points for St. Thomas More.
“If we win this game it helps our kids and that’s all that matters to me,” Quinn said. “A win over an undefeated team gets some of our kids recognition. That’s why we battle so much.”
Quinn’s teams have captured five New England championships and been to 16 New England finals. The Chancellors won the 2011 National Prep School championship and made two other appearances in the national finals.
And Quinn has another talented team this season. “When we get into what we want, we’re really good,” he said.
Espinosa, who called Quinn, “the God of Prep school basketball,” will also be vying for another national title in March. The Mustangs are ranked No. 1 in the national prep coaches poll.
And despite Friday’s heated win, he’s hoping to stay clear of the Chancellors.
“I still say it … this is the toughest place to play,” Espinosa said. “You win by one, you win by 14 … it doesn’t matter. A win’s a win. You take it and you get out of here. They battled for 40 minutes. They’re a tough team and, hopefully, we won’t see them again.”
“It’s an interesting rivalry,” Quinn added. “We’re night and day the way we kind of go about our business. Tom has always gotten those kids to play hard. That being said … those kids really get up to play us too.”
This article originally appeared on The Bulletin: No. 1 Putnam Science wins heated battle against St. Thomas More