JAY — Seventeen. Thirteen. Sixteen. Eleven.
Spruce Mountain’s win total on the boys’ basketball court didn’t trend in the right direction this winter, especially when you consider that four of the top six in the Phoenix rotation are seniors who have performed in that capacity since sophomore year.
Look beneath the surface, examine the benefits of a switch from the Class C-heavy Mountain Valley Conference to the Class B-dominated Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference, and you’ll quickly discover that the most accomplished record is the one without the pretty wrapping paper.
“This is the worst record we’ve ever had, but this is the most confident I’ve ever been,” senior Peter Theriault said.
Flaunting five wins over fellow Class B tournament teams, No. 5 Spruce Mountain (11-7) doesn’t lack for confidence heading into Saturday’s West quarterfinal against No. 4 Lake Region (13-5) at Portland Expo. Tip-off time is 3 p.m.
While the Phoenix had the distinction of losing to the eventual regional champion each of the past three years, they departed with the ill feeling that they had fallen short of expectations. Last year’s quarterfinal loss to Poland may have been the most agonizing.
When combined with similarly devastating losses in the football playoffs the past two autumns, those February freeze-outs have put Theriault and classmates Deonte Ring, Anthony York and Tyler Kachnovich in desperation mode.
“We’ve been all talking about it,” Kachnovich said. “We were disappointed with football. Hopefully we get another crack at it.”
Spruce Mountain entered the season banged-up physically and mentally from the gridiron. The Phoenix had a new coach, former assistant Scott Bessey, who took over when his brother, Chris, moved to the girls’ program. Theriault took a while to prosper in a position change from point guard to small forward. And tougher opponents stood in Spruce’s way, night after night.
A chart of the season looks like a heart EKG. The Phoenix won their first two games, lost three consecutively, took six of the next seven, dropped three of four, and blew out Gardiner and Waterville to end the regular season. The 16-point win over Gardiner avenged a 19-point loss on the road.
“Our record could be different. We could easily have two or three losses,” Bessey said. “With that said, I’m OK with our record. I know how good we are, and that keeps us under the radar. I like where we are right now. I love the way we ended the season.”
In the past, Spruce Mountain scheduled a scrimmage against a Class A opponent prior to the tournament. This year, Bessey stayed the course with 6:30 p.m. practices, bringing in alumni to simulate game situations. He didn’t want the doubts of the past creeping in.
Ring, who scored 29 points in the 77-69 loss to Poland in his junior tourney, leads Spruce Mountain with his explosive game.
“The way Deonte ended the season, right now, I would say he’s the best player in the conference,” Bessey said.
York and Theriault’s emergence as consistent offensive threats at midseason made the Phoenix a matchup problem for most opponents.
Then there’s Kachnovich, who has taken his turn as a spot starter each year but is a lightning rod in the sixth man role, a la Vinnie “The Microwave” Johnson of 1980s Detroit Pistons fame.
“When I’m on, I’m on, and when I’m off, I’m off,” Kachnovich said. “That’s just the way it is. I’ll do anything for the team. If they want me to jack 3s, I’ll jack them.”
Spruce Mountain is one of three KVAC Class B teams in the Portland quarterfinals. Five made it into the Eastern fray at Bangor. Maranacook made into the Class C West field in Augusta.
In terms of being battle-tested, the Phoenix know there is no comparison to seasons past.
“I feel like we’re a lot better prepared,” York said. “We’re playing a lot more competition. Every game’s not a let-off.”
Prior to the Poland loss, Spruce Mountain capped its final MVC season against two opponents who didn’t even make the Class C tournament.
“This year there’s no doubt. They know they’re good enough. I know they’re good enough,” Bessey said. “We know we’re good enough to win the whole thing. There isn’t one team in there that I look at as unbeatable.”
Spruce wears the humility of past disappointments and the desperation of being seniors well.
The Phoenix had one final team meeting after their second cold snap of the KVAC campaign. Since then, they’ve gone 3-1.
“It’s played a big role. It kind of hit us in the face later in the season,” Theriault said. “We’ve been playing good the past two weeks, because we realize this is the last shot we’ve got.”
A win over Wells in the 2012 quarterfinals is Spruce’s only victory in Portland to date. Theriault was the only member of his class to see significant court time as a freshman.
Having grown up in Jay, Bessey uniquely understands the passion of the Phoenix fans and the pressures, spoken and unspoken, that exist.
He also knows that teams with so much tournament experience in multiple sports usually deliver as upperclassmen, so his fingers are crossed. Not for selfish reasons, however.
“They deserve it. I love these kids. I just want it so bad for them,” the coach said. “There are very few groups that have been starting since sophomore year that have failed, hard, right on the brink, getting their heart broken. This is kind of like their last shot. They’ve had an unbelievable high school career in all sports. We’re going in with that.”
Maybe their number is finally up.
koakes@sunjournal.com
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