Spruce Mountain’s Austin Darling looks to get by a pressing Josh Huston late in the game during yesterday’s game at the Expo in Portland.
PORTLAND — Spruce Mountain junior guard Mason Shink has no conscience when he gets the ball and fires off a fusillade of shots from the perimeter.
Going off on a shooting binge doesn’t bother him a bit — and if Shink misses a shot — he’s already thinking about making the next one.
Shink displayed no remorse after he hit seven of his record-setting eight 3-pointers in the first half, paving the way for second-ranked Spruce Mountain’s 88-66 victory over seventh-ranked Lisbon (9-10) in a Class B South boys’ basketball quarterfinal at the Portland Expo on Saturday.
“I am always confident — just shoot it when I am open,” Shink said. “Coach is always behind me. He’s always supportive, always wants me to shoot when I am open. If I don’t shoot it, he’s always mad. If they are falling, they are falling. You get the ball in your hands, you want to shoot it every time. Yeah, I don’t have conscience.
The Phoenix (16-3) move on and up to face third-ranked Wells (14-5) on Thursday at the Cross Center in Bangor. The Warriors eliminated the No. 6 Maranacook Black Bears, 44-29, in a morning quarterfinal at the Expo.
Shink, who set a Class B south playoff game record of eight 3-pointers (the record was seven), amassed 25 of his game-high 38 points in the first half and was busy inside the paint as well, pulling down the team-high seven rebounds.
“I had to work for (the perimeter),” Shink said. “That’s a good defensive team. No. 2 (Jonah Sautter) did his best to lock me up. He played really good defense. I have a lot respect for him.”
The fast-and-furious Phoenix had a lot of help from a bench that has been depleted by two key starters. Caulin Parker, a 6-foot-2 forward, left early in the first quarter with a nagging shoulder injury, and guard Brett Frey continues to recover from a serious concussion he suffered in a regular-season game against Leavitt.
“They are two very big pieces obviously,” Shink said. “We need them. Brett will be back next Thursday as will Caulin. They are excited for our run in the tournament.”
“We needed it,” Spruce Mountain coach Scott Bessey said. “Caulin went down early. He separated his shoulder again. We are already without Brett because of his concussion.
“You lose Caulin early and that’s two starters that’s down within the first quarter. That’s two starters so the bench had to be great and they were great.
“They were fantastic. I thought Noah (Preble) was fantastic. Austin (Darling) finally got into his groove in the second half when things started to tighten up. He had a couple of penetrating baskets that opened it back up a little bit.”
Shink did most of his damage in the first half after the Greyhounds rousted the Phoenix in the first quarter. The junior guard threw in 25 points and hit seven 3-pointers before hitting his final 3 in the third quarter to set a record.
“We’ve shot that well. We have had games where we’ve hit 13 3’s and 14 3’s,” Bessey said. “That did not surprise us. What surprised me is in this building. That’s the best we’ve shot in this building in the six years that Spruce has been formed. “But Mason is one of those no-conscience shooters.
“He’s going to shoot the lights out in a barn on a 15-foot rim. He is one of those…shooters that missing shots isn’t going to bother him. The environment is not going to bother him. He has no conscience and sometimes that hurts us, sometimes it helps us. Today it helped us.”
The second half proved anti-climatic, even though the Greyhounds remained defiant to the end. Spruce Mountain built a healthy 49-27 lead at halftime and by the time the fourth quarter rolled around, the Phoenix were up 71-41.
Preble, a senior guard, was also hot from the perimeter, hitting three of his five 3-point attempts and scoring 22 points. Darling started to penetrate Lisbon’s stubborn defense in the paint in the third and fourth quarters, scoring14 points to keep Spruce far out in front.
Lisbon’s Tyrese Joseph, who pulled down a game-high 11 rebounds, threw in the team-high 20 points, followed Sean Scott’s (four 3-pointers) 14 and Jonah Sautter’s 12.
The Greyhounds were a danger from the perimeter, too, dropping in 11 3-pointers to Spruce’s 12. They were also strong at the charity stripe, hitting 9 of their 14 free-throw attempts. The Phoenix hit 18 of 24 free-throws.
“They have more than one shooter on the outside so they can spread it out pretty well. They are very quick with their dribble drive,” Lisbon coach Jake Gentle said. “You either collapse on them and try take away the drive and leave the 3…you have to give them credit on their offensive execution.
“Anytime we can make it to Expo in the quarterfinals is always a positive thing for Lisbon basketball. Hopefully, it creates a little bit more buzz and gets kids involved.”
Lisbon’s Lucas Francis calls for help after Spruce Mountain’s Noah Preble gets by him during yesterday’s game at the Expo in Portland.
Spruce Mountain’s Austin Darling directs the offense early in the 2nd half during yesterday’s game at the Expo in Portland.
Spruce Mountain’s Andrew Shaw looks to get a shot off guarded by Lisbon’s Josh Huston during yesterday’s game at the Expo in Portland.
Spruce Mountain’s Noah Preble goes up between Lisbon’s Jonah Sautter and Josh Huston during yesterday’s game at the Expo in Portland.
Spruce Mountain’s Mason Shink goes in for a layup guarded by Lisbon’s Jonah Sautter (left) and Tyrese Joseph during yesterday’s game at the Expo in Portland.
Spruce mountain fans celebrate Mason Shink’s record breaking 8th 3-pointer during yesterday’s game at the Expo in Portland.
Spruce Mountain’s Mason Shink, center, is congratulated by teammates Jordan Daigle (left) and Kayle Stewart after sinking a class-B playoff record breaking 8th 3-pointer during yesterday’s game at the Expo in Portland.
Lisbon head coach Jack Gentle reacts late in the game after Spruce Mountain scores another basket during yesterday’s game at the Expo in Portland.
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