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Subscribe to our NewsletterMedford Drops Undermanned Tornadoes, 59-56.
Medford: Playing without two of their starters, the Malden Tornadoes dropped their second straight game, this time to league rival Medford, 59-56. The loss drops the Tornadoes to 8-7 on the season and still two wins away from their elusive 10th to secure a 3rd straight Div. 1 State Tournament berth.
"We can't make excuses, we were undermanned but we knew that coming into the game and prepared for it." said a frustrated Malden Head Coach Don Nally after the contest. "They were the agressors throughout the game and met every challenge we brought to them. Our hats off to them."
Malden jumped on the Mustangs early and led 16-15 after 1 quarter. This would be the last lead the Tornadoes would hold for the rest of the contest. The Mustangs could not match the Tornadoes size but more than made up for it with their 3pt shooting, shooting 10 for 21 from beyond the arc. The Mustangs led 32-29 at the half before really pushing their lead in the 3rd quarter thanks to their 3pt shooting. Medford drilled five 3pt field goals in the 3rd quarter to push their lead to 9, 47-38, heading into the 4th quarter.
"They were lights out all night." Nally said. "We tried a couple of different defenses but they were ready for whatever we threw at them. Great ball movement led to good looks and they knocked them down."
Malden made a push in the 4th quarter, outscoring the Mustangs 18 to 12 in the 4th, tieing the game at 54 with under two minutes left. Forward Anthony Gilardi led the Tornadoes with 19 points and 8 rebounds. Gilardi was helped by the play of junior guard Raheem 'Skip' Langston who scored a season-high 13 points. Senior guard Jensen Ayuk led the defensive effort on the Mustangs and scored his own career high with 8 points on 4 of 5 shooting. Malden had a chance to tie late but were unable to convert a last second three point attempt. Malden returns to action on Saturday to take on Westfield.