Malden, MA: After going winless in their GBL schedule in 2010-11, the Malden High Boys' basketball team was anxious to measure themselves up against the league this year. Who better to start their GBL battles than with arch-rival Medford High School at the Roy Finn Gymnasium on a Friday night. After trailing at the end of each of the game's first three quarters, the Tornadoes rallied in the 4th quarter to post a 66-62 victory to improve to 4-1 on the season.



"I love all the teams I've coached and they all showed me heart but, honestly, last year's team would not have been able to pull out a game like tonight." Malden coach Don Nally said from the victorious locker room. "We just didn't have enough toughness or enough finishers. But this year, we have depth and aggressive kids at both ends of the floor. I thought the two newcomers, Terrance (Maisonneuve, junior guard) and Alphonso (Hildago, senior forward) gave us a tremendous lift tonight. Terrance with his shooting and tough drives to the basket and Alphonso with his defense and offensive rebounding."



Medford, led by their big three of seniors Maurice Magras and Larry Keating and junior Sean Doncaster, jumped out early on the Tornadoes leading 15-9 after one quarter and 38-32 at the half. Magras and Keating combined for 26 of the team's 38 first half points. For the game, the threesome accounted for 58 of the team's 62 points. In the second half, Nally and the Tornadoes made a slight adjustment shifting to a full court zone press back into an aggressive 2-3 zone defense. The result was just 10 3rd quarter points for the Mustangs.



"The coaching staff got together at halftime and we agreed that the press and zone might slow their pace down a bit, which it definitely did. " Nally said. "It also allowed us to save our legs for the fourth quarter when we shifted back to more man to man defense."



Maisonneuve, similar to his opening night 43 point explosion, caught fire in the second half, nailing 3 3pt field goals and penetrating the Mustang defense for a number of driving layups. The junior would score 15 of his game-high 27 points in the second half. Hildago was a presence on the offensive glass, keeping a number of Tornado offensive possessions alive while accounting for 12 points and 9 rebounds, including 5 on the offensive glass. Junior tri-captain Rodney Morton also played a key role, nailing two second half three pointers and ending the game with 12 points, 6 rebounds, 4 steals and 3 assists.



The game would be decided on the defensive end, however, as the Tornadoes got key stop after stop in the 4th quarter. Instrumental to the team's defensive efforts were senior tri-captains Hiago DeSena and Witche Exilhomme. DeSena, the team's floor leader, led both team's with 7 steals, to go along with 7 points and 4 assists. Exilhomme chipped in with 6 points, 6 rebounds and 2 steals.



"I'm really proud of our guys tonight. We didn't win a game in the league last year and, to win the first one out of the gate this year....well, thats special." Nally added. "The most rewarding part was that we got contributions from a number of guys, not just the starters. I thought our bench played a huge role in this game and they will have to the rest of the way if we want to win the league."



The Tornadoes return to the floor this Wednesday, as the team travels for the first time this season to take on Concord Carlisle High School. Game time is 7:00PM.