BEVERLY — For Beverly High guard Dylan Crowley, all it takes is one.
As soon as the sharpshooting senior swished his first triple through the net in Friday’s Division 1 first round playoff bout against Bishop Feehan, he felt like he was already in a zone.
Crowley proceeded to knock in six more from deep, seven other field goals from a variety of spots on the floor, and nine free throws before the final buzzer. The result was a record-setting 44-point outburst in front of a packed house at Henry Cabot Lodge Field House.
More importantly, his Panthers rolled to a convincing 90-63 victory to punch their ticket into the state’s Sweet 16.
“I was telling the guys before the game when the first three falls, it’s over. Everything feels good after that,” said Crowley, who broke Chuck Palmer’s boys program record of 41 points set back in 1987. Emily Witwicki Morency’s school record of 45 points set in 1959 remained intact.
“It was just confidence, too,” Crowley continued. “You see that first one fall and your confidence is through the roof, especially with our crowd, too. It’s awesome.”
That Panthers’ faithful crowd was certainly a factor — as it has been in any big game in recent years. Soccer standout Ian Visnick and his crew had an ESPN-like broadcast table set up in front of a sea of orange student section that was electric from start to finish.
Riding the wave, Crowley splashed his first shot from deep in the opening quarter, helping Beverly race out to a 12-2 start. By the end of the first he had 10 and the Panthers held a 22-16 lead against a feisty Feehan squad.
Five-foot-8 Shamrock point guard Dylan Capua kept his team in it with an eight point frame himself, and it appeared we might be headed for a real battle in The Garden City. But a quick 5-0 run from Ryder Frost — who threw down a ferocious dunk in traffic and canned a corner triple during the spurt — jolted Beverly back up by 10 and ignited an offensive onslaught that carried through for the remaining three frames.
Crowley would score 11 more in the second quarter to go into the half with 21. Meanwhile, Frost had 15 and eight boards on his way to a quietly monster performance as well.
“The kids had a great week of practice,” said Panthers’ head coach Matt Karakoudas. “Every single practice they were focused, bought in, paying attention and watching film. They knew the scouting report and they just did a really good job tonight.”
Holding a 43-31 edge at the break, Beverly completely blew things open in the third quarter. Crowley continued to lead the charge, breaking free for four straight 3-balls to open the stanza and surpass the 30-point mark with over 12 minutes to go.
Whether he was shaking a defender off the dribble and pulling up effectively, getting in the lane and finishing at the rim, or receiving a pass off a screen and letting loose from deep, Crowley was simply unconscious every time he touched the ball. He capped off an excellent third quarter for the hosts by swiping a steal and streaking to the rim on the other end for a buzzer beating layup and a 68-44 lead for his squad.
“It was all part of the game plan,” joked Karakoudas. “But no, he’s a senior, he doesn’t want to lose, doesn’t want his season to end. He’s one of our best players, he’s an All-Scholastic and I expect that from him. I don’t expect 44 (points), but I’ll take it.”
With Beverly comfortably in the driver’s seat, Crowley helped put the finishing touches on the impressive win with nine more points in the fourth. As good as he was all night, Frost was a beast in his own right.
The 6-foot-5 junior dropped 30 points with three triples of his own, tore down 16 rebounds, dished out three assists and had two rim rocking slams. The dynamic duo combined for 82 percent of their team’s points and Feehan simply had no answer for either of them.
When Frost was doubled or trapped, Crowley found the open seams and put the ball in the basket. When Crowley was face guarded, Frost went to work both in the post and on the perimeter. Neither player forced things and regularly found the open teammate when the shot wasn’t there.
“Ryder somehow had a quiet 30 and 16 which is crazy. He obviously played really well but was overshadowed by Dylan’s 44,” said Karakoudas.
“I just want to enjoy this ride with him,” Crowley added about his 1-2 punch with Frost. “That’s my guy. We want to win this state championship and we want to do whatever it takes; I think we showed that tonight.”
Frost and Crowley carried the load, but it truly was a complete team effort on both ends of the floor.
Noe Diaz (10 points, 3 assists, 1 steal, 1 block) played sound defense throughout and came up with some key buckets early, while Max Hemsey (4 points, 5 rebounds, 1 block) gave Karakoudas some incredibly valuable minutes as well.
Defensively, T.J. Betts, Joey Parsons and freshman Jacob Klass did a great job limiting Feehan’s top dogs in Capua and Cooper Snead (20 points, 4 rebounds). Capua started hot with 11 first half points, but was held scoreless the rest of the way.
The road doesn’t get any easier for Beverly, which will now travel south to take on perennial favorite Worcester North in a Sweet 16 matchup on Tuesday (6:30 p.m.). The sixth-seeded Polar Bears handled No. 27 Wellesley, 67-46, on Friday evening to set up the highly anticipated bout.
“They’re most people’s favorite to win it all so why not go into their gym and try to knock them off?,” asked Karakoudas. “You have to face them sooner or later so let’s just get it out of the way right now. We’ll be ready for them.”
“I’m excited for the atmosphere; I know they have great fans and I know they have great players,” added Crowley. “We’re ready for the challenge.”
Beverly 90, Bishop Feehan 63
at Henry Cabot Lodge Field House, Beverly High
Beverly (17-6): Noe Diaz 3-2-10, Max Hemsey 2-0-4, Ryder Frost 11-5-30, Dylan Crowley 14-9-44, Harry Silva 1-0-2, T.J. Betts 0-0-0, Jacob Klass 0-0-0, Joey Parsons 0-0-0, Dorian D’Entremont 0-0-0, Will Ryan 0-0-0, Mayen Kuot 0-0-0. Totals: 31-16-90.
Bishop Feehan (11-11): James Fasy 1-0-2, Cooper Snead 7-1-20, Dylan Capua 4-2-11, Jonathan Mignacca 3-0-7, Brett McCaffery 0-3-3, Jack Chabot 5-0-11, Phillip Botelho 1-2-5, Dante Bruschi 1-0-2, Matthew Castro 1-0-2. Totals: 23-8-63.
Halftime: 43-31, Beverly
3-Pointers: B — Crowley 7, Frost 3, Diaz 2; BF — Snead 4, Chabot, Capua, Mignacca, Botelho.