BUCKSPORT- Wyatt Young hit one of his five 3-pointers late in the fourth quarter on Monday afternoon, as the Presque Isle Wildcats completed a stunning come from behind 65-64 Class B boys basketball victory over the Bucksport Golden Bucks at Jewett Gymnasium. PI outscored Bucksport 41-21 in the second half, to turn a 19 point halftime deficit into a one point road victory.
It was all Bucksport (4-6) in the first half. The Bucks scored the first seven points of the day, and got double digit scoring from Evan Donnell (14 points), Collin McDougal (12), and Caden Blackwood (10) as they would lead by as many as 21 and 19 at the break at 43-24. Then came the second half. Presque Isle started the third quarter on a 10-2 run to cut their deficit to 11. Brent Greenlaw (9 points) and Carter Vigue (6) sparked the Wildcats in the period, but it was still an 11 point advantage for the hosts from Bucksport 55-44 headed to the fourth. Vigue would add eight more points in the final eight minutes, including two 3-pointers scoring a team-high 16 points off the bench (14 in second half). Young also knocked down three 3-pointers in the fourth, but none bigger than one from the corner with 47 seconds left to give Presque Isle their first lead of the day. The Wildcats had a chance to extend the lead with 16.1 seconds to go, but Jack Boone missed two free throws giving Bucksport one more opportunity with 11.3 seconds remaining. Donnell got the first look with a jumper from just outside the free throw line that missed, and after the rebound got boxed around the ball came back to him where he got off another shot just inside the 3-point arc that also hit off the back of the rim as time expired.
Vigue led Presque Isle in the win with his 16 points (three 3-pointers). Young had his five 3-pointers to account for all 15 of his points. Greenlaw finished up with 13 points. Also chipping in for the Wildcats was Jack Buck with nine points and eight rebounds, Eli Mosher with six points, while Boone and Kason Bua each contributed three points a piece. PI shot 7-12 from the line in improving to 3-7 on the season. They hit a total of 10 shots from behind the 3-point arc as a team. Donnell led all scorers in the loss for Bucksport with 20 points (two 3-pointers), six rebounds, three steals, two assists, and two blocked shots. McDougal had 16 points (two 3-pointers), and Blackwood had 15 (three 3-pointers). Kamryn Webber also had five points, and Jake Williams along with Trent Goss had four points a piece. The Golden Bucks outrebounded the Wildcats 26-23, but only had two free throw attempts (1-2). Both teams are back in action on Thursday, as Presque Isle plays at Houlton and Bucksport travels to Foxcroft Academy in a game that can be seen on Eastern Maine Sports Media with pregame coverage beginning at 6:45 p.m.
Recap by Chris Lessner/Videos by Eastern Maine Sports Media
Presque Isle guard Wyatt Young talks to Eastern Maine Sports Media after his game winning three-pointer led the Wildcats to a huge comeback victory over Bucksport on Monday, January 15.
