Played at The Pit to accommodate Old Town and Orono’s raucous fanbases, Tuesday’s regular season finale between the rival boys basketball teams did not disappoint, as the reigning champion Red Riots outlasted the No. 1 Coyotes, 59-48.
Like their overtime thriller at Old Town earlier this season, Tuesday’s prizefight between the championship hopefuls went wire–to-wire, with four lead changes in the fourth quarter alone.
Up 46-45 with three minutes remaining, Old Town let the game escape them as Orono used two Will Francis steals, a senior Pierce Walston putback and a layup through contact for Ben Francis to make it 52-46 and never look back.
With the win, No. 5 Orono knotted the season series 1-1, and improved to 15-3. Playing without star senior point guard Grayson Thibeualt for the second consecutive game, Old Town moved to an identical 15-3.
This story will be updated.
