LYNN — The Lynn English boys basketball team finished off its shortened 2020-21 season on a high note over the weekend, notching a 75-71 win over Greater Boston League foe Everett to take home the GBL Tournament title at Paul F. Cavanagh Field House Saturday afternoon. It was a battle from start to finish, with English taking advantage of an Everett cold streak to pull ahead for good in the fourth quarter.
Kanye Wavezwa was the leading scorer for English, notching a game-high 25 points. Ademide Badmus — who was honored before the game for scoring his 1,000th career point earlier in the season — notched a double-double with 20 points and 14 rebounds while also adding three blocks on the defensive side. Louis Rivera Jr. added 15 points in the win.
The game was a battle from the very start. After trading blows throughout the first quarter, Everett ended the frame with a 25-22 lead after Kevin Ruiz hit a buzzer-beating three for the Crimson Tide.
The two sides continued to battle in the second quarter, with Wavezwa leading English’s offensive charge and John Monexant (22 points) leading Everett’s. Wavezwa hit a putback layup to give English the lead late, but Everett was able to go into the halftime break with a 36-35 lead.
The Crimson Tide took their biggest lead of the game late in the third quarter, jumping ahead by seven points with 2:27 to play in the frame.
But that’s when English flipped the script.
The Bulldogs closed the third quarter on a 14-0 run, forcing eight turnovers on the defensive end and riding the back of Badmus, who led the team in points and rebounds for the quarter. By the end of the third, the Bulldogs held a 55-50 lead.
Everett’s scoring drought extended into the fourth quarter, with Monexant finally hitting a 3-pointer with 5:30 to play to make it 59-53 English. But it was too little, too late. English had firmly grasped control by that point, and the Bulldogs were able to keep the Crimson Tide at an arm’s length until the final buzzer sounded.
English closes out the season with a perfect 8-0 record. It was the final game for seven seniors — Badmus, Aaron Vizcaino, Abdoul Bah, Marvens Rosirus, Zion Taylor, Santiago Grijalva and Joshua Transmatar — and was also the final game for head coach Antonio Anderson, who is moving on to become the head coach at Springfield Commonwealth Academy.