BY CHARLIE ADAMS, TSM LEAD WRITER
(CRANSTON, RI) - After a clean sweep in their annual holiday tournament, including a close win over Cranston West, the ‘Bolts were back in action to take on the Narragansett Mariners this Tuesday. Narragansett led all the way, capitalizing on East's mistakes as they won 60-52.
Cranston East was led by Naz Milien’s 16 points and Delwin Montan’s 13 points. Despite this, it was not enough to take home the victory.
The Thunderbolts struggled early to secure rebounds, allowing the Mariners to get extra chances. Narragansett turned those chances into scores from deep, and thus led 14-8 after the first quarter.
The second quarter saw the same sloppiness as the first, but following a timeout, the ‘Bolts found some energy. With this, they kept the game close as they trailed by 5 going into halftime.
Delwin Montan’s 8 points in the third quarter kept the Thunderbolts within single digits of Narragansett, as they trailed 42-34 with a quarter to go.
In the fourth, Milien led the way with 7 points, but the ‘Bolts couldn’t make any dents in the Narragansett lead, losing 60-52.
Defensive rebounding was a consistent issue, and the ‘Bolts offense was extremely streaky. Free throw shooting and trouble with the referees all played a part in the loss as East was assessed three technical fouls.
Despite these issues, Cranston East remained within striking distance all the way through.
In the end, it was too much Mariner size and too much Mekhi Wilson, who scored a game-high 23 points for Narragansett, for East to overcome.
The boys' basketball team will return to action on Thursday when they travel to East Providence to face the Townies.
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