BANGOR — Matt Hall is listed at 6 feet tall, and that might be a mild stretch for the Gardiner High senior. But one thing is clear: Whether he’s 6-0, 5-11 or as tall as the Paul Bunyan statue that stands in front of the Bangor Auditorium, Hall can jump.
It’s rare that a rebound will elicit oohs and ahhs from the crowd, but Hall’s offensive rebound with just over four minutes left in the Eastern Class B boys’ basketball semifinal Wednesday against Medomak Valley did just that.
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There was Hall in the middle of the key, outjumping Medomak Valley’s 6-7 John Murray for the ball. Hall scored on the putback, giving the Tigers a lead they would not surrender.
No. 3 Gardiner (18-2) scored the last seven points, all from the line, to secure a 57-46 win and advance to the Eastern B final for the first time. No. 2 Medomak Valley ended 17-3.
The win avenged a pair of loses to Medomak Valley this season, one in the regular season and one in the Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference Class B championship game.
Gardiner Coach Jason Cassidy called Hall’s rebound and basket the turning point of the game.
“The whole Gardiner side of that building, and probably any fan in that building, respected what he just did right there,” Cassidy said.
“I guess I was really high on that rebound,” said Hall, who finished with 14 points and 12 rebounds. “I knew there were people in front of me so I had to get higher than them.”
Offensively, the star of the day for Gardiner was senior guard Jake Palmer, who scored 33 points and was a perfect 11 of 11 at the free-throw line. Palmer made 10 of his foul shots in the fourth quarter.
With Medomak Valley playing tight defense on Gardiner’s Aaron Toman, Palmer knew he would get the chance to score.
“They just sagged off me a little bit and I decided to keep shooting it,” Palmer said.
The teams traded the lead in the first half and the Panthers opened up a 36-29 lead late in the third quarter. Gardiner stuck with its game plan, playing full-court defense and rotating seven players in and out of the lineup, hoping to tire out the Panthers. Cassidy figured Medomak Valley would melt down a little if pressed the entire game.
Murray led Medomak Valley with 12 points and 11 rebounds, while Alex Greenrose added 10 points.
Gardiner was 17 of 21 from the free-throw line.
Travis Lazarczyk — 861-9242
tlazarczyk@centralmaine.com
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