The last time the Mattanawcook Academy boys basketball team from Lincoln played in a state championship game, Dwight D. Eisenhower was the president of the United States.
It was 1956 and the Lynx lost to Cape Elizabeth 76-54 in the first Class M (now Class C) final.
Sixty-nine years later, the Lynx, under first-year head coach Adam Mahaney, are off to a 10-0 start and have outscored their opponents 772-436. They sat atop the Class C North standings entering a Wednesday night game at Dexter.
The Lynx won only three regular season games two years ago, and just two the season prior. Brian McDormand took over as head coach last season and guided the team to a 13-5 regular season record before losing to Piscataquis Community High of Guilford in the preliminary round of the C North tournament.
McDormand stepped down from his post due to health issues after last season. Now, Mahaney’s first varsity basketball coaching job is off to a good start.
“The unique thing about this group is they have played together for a long time and they are probably one of the most unselfish groups I’ve ever come across,” said Mahaney, an Old Town native. ”They share the ball. They don’t care who scores. As long as we win, they’re happy.”
The Lynx are a well-balanced, close-knit, run-and-gun outfit that works hard and employs a full-court, man-to-man press that has forced a lot of turnovers, which has led to easy baskets.
“We knew we had a quick team going into the season. Our goal was to get out and run,” Mahaney said. “If you watch our games, we really value shot volume. We try to put a lot of shots up.”
Mahaney estimates the team puts up between 65 and 70 shots per game.
“We have a good mix. We shoot a lot of threes and we get a lot of fast break layups,” Mahaney said.
He said his players are “very athletic” and love to get up and down the court. Their scoring balance makes it very difficult to defend them.
They are also tenacious on defense.
During one stretch this season, the team had a different leading scorer for five consecutive games. The team has four players averaging in double figures.
The Lynx’s leading scorer is sophomore point guard Kooper McCarthy, who is averaging 14.7 points per game. He also leads the team in assists (7.4 per game) and steals (4.1). He hauls down 4.8 rebounds as well.
“He is the workhorse. He would run through a wall for you. He is someone you don’t want guarding you because he will make it miserable for you. And he is finding his shot now,” Mahaney said. ”Central sagged off him in their zone and he hit five straight threes.”
Six-foot-four junior forward Andrew Oliver is right behind at 14.5 points per game and averages 5.1 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 2.8 steals.
“He’s someone who can fill the stat sheet,” said Mahaney, who pointed out that Oliver can score inside and outside.
“He’s not your prototypical post player. He can light it up from the outside pretty good. He also blocks shots and can find the open man with his passes,” Mahaney said.
Junior guard Avery Jordan is producing 13.9 points, 3 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.6 steals per game. He has been a 54 percent shooter from the floor and is a 3-point threat.
James Trott is the team’s only senior and the forward has averaged 10.9 points, 3.6 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.7 steals.
“He’s explosive. He can jump out of the gym,” Mahaney said. “He gets a lot of fast break opportunities. He’s very aggressive on defense and he’s fast.”
The center is 6-foot-3 sophomore True Weatherbee. He leads the team with 5.2 rebounds per game and he has also supplied 7.7 points, 1.5 steals and 1.3 assists.
Mahaney also has several important contributors off the bench.
Sophomore forward Jacoby Savage has given the Lynx 5.2 points and 1.5 rebounds per game and can be “an instant sparkplug for us,” Mahaney said.
Another sophomore forward, Carter Milner, has provided 4.4 rebounds per game to go with 1.6 steals and 2.4 points.
Sophomore guard Ryder Osnoe is an exceptional defender who gets a lot of loose balls; sophomore guard Isaac Ritchie has a “very high IQ with the basketball” and also brings energy and a perimeter shooting threat; and 6-foot-6 sophomore forward Liam Welsh can hit threes and is developing his inside game, according to Mahaney.
Supplying depth are promising freshman guards Landon Seeley and Eric Ayotte, sophomore guard Logan Martinez and junior forward guard Landon Arthers.
The Lynx have already avenged the five regular season losses from a year ago, beating a Calais team twice by an average of 24 ½ points and posting a 65-56 win over George Stevens Academy and a 63-38 victory against Penobscot Valley of Howland.
Calais and George Stevens Academy both swept Mattanawcook a year ago, and PVHS split with them.
The Lynx have one game remaining with George Stevens Academy and PVHS.
The first goal for the Lynx is to make it to the Cross Insurance Center in Bangor for the C North tournament, Mahaney said. None of his players have made it.
“Once we get there, we’ll start thinking about other goals,” Mahaney said.
