Tag: Great Bay

Herons go 1-1 at D-II nationals

By: Mike Whaley

The Great Bay CC men’s basketball team went 1-1 at the USCAA Division II National Tournament in Buffalo to finish the season with the best record in school history (23-6).

The No. 4 Herons lost their opener on Wednesday night to Penn State Schuylkill, 74-55. It was a close game at the half with GBCC trailing, 35-32. But Penn State used a big second half (39-23) to pull away. Theo Wolfe led the Herons with 15 points and 17 rebounds. Mpore Semuhoza added 10 points and seven boards. Sean Chanakira and Ethan May (five steals) added nine and eight points, respectively. GB shot just 34 percent from the field and made only 5 of 26 of their 3-pointers.

In the consolation round on Thursday, Great Bay bounced back to beat Penn State York, 103-100. Wolfe had a monster night with a game-high 37 points on 14-of-17 shooting to go along with nine rebounds. Semuhoza added 23 points, Chanakira knocked in 12. Keith Landry and Cam O’Brien had seven points apiece. The win was the 23rd for the Herons, also a school record.

Miami Hamilton won the national title on Saturday over Penn State Schuylkill, 53-52.

At the award ceremony on Monday (March 10), Wolfe was named D-II First Team All-American and Semuhoza was picked to the second team. NHTI’s Joseph Cantey was honorable mention.

Destination Buffalo: Great Bay embraces its journey to the nationals

By: Mike Whaley

A direct route to your final destination is not always the way it goes. How about the paths taken by four key players for the conference champion Great Bay Community College men’s basketball squad? Three started at other schools before winding up at GBCC, while a fourth began there fresh out of high school, left for two years, but now is back. All four are playing key roles as the Herons prepare for their second trip to the United State Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) Division II Tournament, set for March 11-15 in Buffalo, New York.

Great Bay is currently in the midst of the finest season in program history. On Sunday, the Herons captured their first Yankee Small College Conference playoff championship with a 71-55 win over VTSU-Randolph to improve to a school-record 22-5. No. 4 GBCC opens up the nationals on Wednesday, 10:30 p.m., in Buffalo against No. 5 Penn State Schuylkill in the Elite Eight.

Two years ago, the Herons barely qualified for their first national tournament as the 10th and final seed. But they made some noise with two upset wins to make the USCAA Final Four before they were eventually eliminated. Last year the team went 18-8 and lost in the conference semis.

All-Conference forward Theo Wolfe, a 6-5 senior, originally came to New England from Kissimmee, Florida, in 2019, spending a year at UMaine-Machias with some ex-AAU teammates. He returned to Florida when the school’s athletic programs were suspended during the Covid-19 pandemic. They are still suspended. Junior Mpore “MP” Semuhoza went from Deering High School in Portland, Maine, to Central Maine CC, where he had a solid first year, but was looking for something else. Keith Landry, a 6-5 senior forward, graduated from Belmont High School in 2020, enrolled at Plymouth State University, but was cut from the basketball team. Ethan May headed to Great Bay in 2019 from Londonderry High School, played two years and then moved on with his life equipped with a welding certificate.

All four eventually ended up at, or back, at Great Bay. It is impossible to imagine the Herons’ current run of success without them – or without the deepest team in the conference. “We rotate 10 guys, so there’s plenty of contribution going on,” coach Alex Burt said. “Other (teams) might go 6, 7, 8 (deep), we generally go 10.”

May might just have been the missing piece on this year’s team as a quality secondary scorer and a veteran defensive stopper. He played two years at Great Bay (2019-20, 2021, 22), sandwiched around a missed Covid year. Once he had his welding credentials he felt he was ready to move on. It had been a difficult three years juggling a commuter school’s academic schedule, basketball and working full time. “It was hectic. I thought I was just ready for life,” he said.

It turns out he wasn’t. He was away for two years working, but his basketball passion was still there pulsating in the background. “I was coming to games,” May said. “I saw them get smacked by NHTI (in the 2024 conference semifinals, 95-78). I played pickup and stuff. I still kept relatively with it. It’s always been my first love. I’m a defensive guy. So (it was tough) to see them get smacked because of defense. I was in the stands rubbing my knees; like, man, I want to get out there.” He was convinced he needed to return to Great Bay.

Semuhoza, at 6-4 forward, went from high school to Central Maine CC. in 2022-23. He played 13 games, averaging a very solid 7.9 points and 5.8 rebounds per game as a freshman. He had some buyer’s remorse because Burt had recruited him out of high school. “I just felt like Great Bay would work better for my game,” he said. “I felt like I was something Great Bay needed at the time, like a spark. He (Burt) gave me a chance and I appreciate Coach for that.”

Landry went to Plymouth, but got cut from the team in 2020. “Burt reached out the next day asking if I wanted to come run with the team and see if I liked it here,” he said.

Burt said Landry “was a kid I had on my radar in the past. I didn’t care if I was Plan A or Plan B, for anyone really. I just know who I want and when they’re ready to come to me, I give them everything I’ve got. It’s been a long-term relationship.” Landry has played four years, which is allowed, even though Great Bay and many colleges in the YSCC are two-year institutions.

When Wolfe left UMaine-Machias after one season in 2020, he thought he was all done with basketball. “I put down the basketball and started pursuing some other things, pursuing photography,” he said. One of Wolfe’s old teammates returned north to play for Great Bay. He reached out to Wolfe and eventually Wolfe reached out to coach Burt. He remembered Great Bay from his Machias days. “I really admired the way they were moving the ball and the way they were playing as a team,” he said. After two years away from the game, Wolfe was ready for a comeback at Great Bay. “I gave up basketball and Coach kind of talked me back into it,” he said.

The impact of these four players this year has been evident. “Ethan May was the x-factor,” said Wolfe. “I wholeheartedly believe if it were not for Ethan May we would not be where we’re at.” Wolfe noted that in the championship game, May held Randolph star Jaylon Calvin to seven first-half points that allowed Great Bay to jump out to a 35-27 lead at the half and eventually pull away in the second half to claim their first conference championship.

“He’s definitely our hidden gem defensively,” coach Burt said of May. “He’s a winner at heart. He’s willing to do whatever it takes for the team. He was ready to dive back in and give a little more for the guys around him.”

May wasn’t initially sure if he was going to go back to Grreat Bay, and then when he did, he wasn’t sure what he would be able to bring to the table. He was part of a team reset that pulled the team together after an 0-2 start. “To see it unfold and everyone understand what they needed to bring,” May said. “It was amazing to see. We put our egos aside and did exactly what we needed to do.” The Herons rattled off 14 straight wins.

It took May a while to regain the old confidence. By mid January he started to see remnants of his former self. “It was tough getting that rhythm and flow back and feeling confident in my shot,” he said. “I was zero percent from 3 the first semester. It was good for myself to finally see that ball go in. I started to get more confident.” His stat line is quite tidy: 9.3 points, 4.5 rebounds, 4.2 assists, and 2.5 steals per game.

“He really painted the picture of what the program could be with us trying to be more defensive,” said Burt of May’s return to Great Bay, which came at a time when the team was switching its emphasis to defense. “Thankfully he was ready to go. He was guarding the best guards, the best wings, literally every single night. We were asking him to cover ridiculous tasks. He was just more than willing, more than able to do it.”

Semuhoza came in last year and had an immediate impact averaging 12.3 points and 5.4 rebounds per game. The Herons went 18-8, but lost in the conference semis. This year, he has been one of the main guys – second in scoring (15.6) and rebounding (8.6), which has helped to soften the blow of losing a pair of big scorers in All-American Kingsley Breen and Bryce Gibson. “I’m kind of an all-around guy and one of our leaders,” said Semuhoza, who was named All-YSCC Second Team.

“MP made a massive jump from last year to this year with his belief in what I was trying to do with the team,” said coach Burt. “He fit in with that.”

Landry has grown in his four years to the point he is now a veteran, a captain and one of the team’s key players. “I’m definitely more involved in the offense and I’m one of the primary defenders,” said Landry, who is averaging 7.7 points, 3.8 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game. “I definitely needed to space the floor for people like Theo and MP to make life easier for those guys.”

Wolfe has been a great three-year player for the Herons, scoring a school record 1,475 points. As good as his first two years were, this season he was even better. He led the nation and the YSCC in scoring (24.9 ppg), and was tops in the YSCC in rebounding (12.2) and second in the nation. He was named All-YSCC First Team. “We were a little motivated by that (losing in the semis last year),” he said. There was also a sense of urgency to find success because it was his last year.

Burt has seen Wolfe’s game expand in three years. “Theo has gained a stronger understanding of how to be effective,” the coach said. “There are times we need him inside, on the outside, off the ball, on the ball. He’s grown tremendously as a person and a player.”

All four were pivotal in Sunday’s championship win over Randolph. Wolfe led the way with 18 points and 13 rebounds. Landry sparked the Herons in the first half with 14 of his 17 points, making 5-of-8 3-pointers in the game. Semuhoza did not score in the first half, but he stayed composed and helped in the second half, ending with seven points and eight boards. May did a nice job defending Randolph’s Calvin, making him work for his 18 points. He also scored 12 points of his own, 10 coming in the second half. May and Semuhoza split eight points during a devastating late 13-0 run that built the lead to 71-50 in the final minute to put the game on ice.

Landry was laser focused on Sunday, especially after what happened in the semis last year against NHTI. It was personal. “It was my birthday,” he said. “I couldn’t lose on my birthday. I lost on my birthday last year to NHTI (by 18 points). I just couldn’t lose on my birthday again.” And by winning, Landry (and the Herons) got the best birthday basketball gift of all – a bid to the nationals.

Mike Whaley can be reached at whaleym25@gmail.com

Check out a full photo gallery of the YSCC title game by Michael Griffin…

Great Bay earns No. 4 seed at national tournament

By: Mike Whaley

The Great Bay Community College men’s basketball team has some momentum going into the United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) Division II Tournament, which will be played in Buffalo, New York, March 11-15. The Herons (22-5) earned the No. 4 seed in the 10-team field when the pairings were announced Monday. They will play No. 5 Penn State Schuylkill on Wednesday, March 12, 10:30 p.m., at either Villa Maria College or Erie Community College. If the Herons win they will play in the final four on Friday, March 14. If they lose, they will play a consolation game on March 13.

The rest of the tournament field includes No. 1 Penn State Mont Alto, No. 2 UC-Clermont, No. 3 Miami-Hamilton, No. 6. Penn State York, No. 7 Penn State Dubois, No. 8 Penn State Wilkes Barre (the two-time defending national champion), No. 9 VTSU-Randolph, and No. 10 Bucks County CC.

Great Bay earned the automatic bid to the nationals by winning its first-ever Yankee Small College Conference (YSCC) tournament championship, winning two games this past weekend at Southern Maine Community College. The Herons went 3-0 overall with wins over Paul Smith’s College, 103-95; Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, 79-67, and Randolph, 71-55, in the final.

The Herons have been led by 6-foot-5 senior forward Theo Wolfe, a three-year performer who has 1,475 career points. A YSCC First-Team All-Conference pick, Wolfe led the conference in both scoring (24.9 ppg) and rebounding (12.2 rpg), and was actually the national scoring champion. He elevated his game during the playoffs, averaging 26.7 points and 15.7 rebounds in the three contests to earn Tournament MVP honors. Mpore Semuhoza, a 6-4 junior forward, was second in both scoring (15.6) and rebounding (8.6) on the way to earning Second Team All-Conference honors. Also chipping in were a couple of Granite State guys: Londonderry junior Ethan May (9.3 ppg) and Belmont senior Keith Landry (7.7 ppg). Landry was named the Offensive Player of the Tournament.

GBCC has some NH flavor with coach Alex Burt (Dover), Landry, May, Sean Chanakira (Danville), Ethan Arnold (Wakefield), Jordan Berko (Farmington), Dylan Jabre (Dover), Joe Gutwein (Peterborough), Cam O’Brien (Dover), Ryan Morse (Salem,) and Thomas Delgado (Exeter).

Randolph (20-12) will play a first-round game on March 11 against Penn State Wilkes Barre. On the women’s side, conference champion Central Maine CC  and runner-up UMaine-Augusta punched tickets to the national tourney, also in Buffalo.

Check out the full photo gallery from Great Bay’s title game victory by Michael Griffin…

Herons capture conference title, earn bid to nationals

By: Mike Whaley

SOUTH PORTLAND, ME – The Great Bay Community College men’s basketball team used a late 13-0 run to pull away from VTSU-Randolph and capture the Yankee Small College Conference (YSCC) playoff championship, 71-55, Sunday at Southern Maine Community College.

The win earned the top-seeded Herons (22-5) the YSCC’s automatic bid to the United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) Division II Tournament, which will be played in Buffalo, New York, March 11-15. Randolph (20-12) could possibly earn one of eight at-large berths when the 10-team field is announced Monday at 12:20 p.m. during a live stream on the USCAA website. Indeed the YSCC could have three men’s teams traveling to Buffalo.

“We’ve been in there games where teams went on a run and we went on a run. It was blow for blow,” said GB coach Alex Burt. “We said one word: ‘Response.’ ‘How are we going to respond?’ I’m proud of our guys for the way they pulled away in the end.”

Great Bay led 58-50 with 4:41 to play, but Mpore Semuhoza and Ethan May sparked the big run with four points apiece to help the Herons pull away, widening the gap to 71-50 with 43 seconds to go. GBCC led 35-27 at the half, and was up by as many as 16 (47-31) midway through the second half. Randolph made a run to twice cut the lead to eight, but could draw no closer.

Tournament MVP Theo Wolfe led four Herons in double figures with 18 points and 13 rebounds. Keith Landry, the Offensive Player of the Tournament, chipped in with 17 points (5-8 3-pointers), nine rebounds and six assists, while May scored 10 of his 12 points in the second half. Cam O’Brien came off the bench to contribute 12 points as well on 6-of-8 shooting. Semuhoza had seven points, all in the second half, and eight boards.

Tyler Allen led Randolph with 21 points, while Jaylon Calvin added 18 with 10 rebounds and seven assists.

This will be Herons’ second trip to the nationals in three years. In 2023, they earned the 10th and final bid, pulled off two upsets before losing in the national semifinal. That team went 22-9. Last year, GBCC went 18-8, losing in the conference semis, but did not get a bid to the nationals. This year’s 22-5 mark is the best in program history.

Herons advance to conference championship

By Mike Whaley

SOUTH PORTLAND, ME – Theo Wolfe and Mpore Semuhoza each recorded a double-double on Saturday to lift the top-seeded Great Bay Community College men’s basketball team to a 79-67 win over No. 4 Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences in the semifinal round of the Yankee Small College Conference (YSCC) at SMCC. GBCC (21-5) will play No. 3 VTSU-Randolph in today’s championship at 3 p.m.

Wolfe led all players with 27 points and 14 rebounds, while Semuhoza added 21 points (4 of 8 3-pointers) and 10 boards. Ethan Arnold and Ethan May each chipped in with seven points. YSCC Player of the Year Brett Richards led Albany with 21 points.

The Herons led 46-36 at the half, and then widened the gap to the largest lead of the night to that point on a Semuhoza 3-pointer, 49-36, to start the second half. The Panthers’ cut the lead to four, 49-45, but that was it. May’s steal and layup sparked a 6-0 Great Bay run to get the lead back to 10, 55-45. Eventually the Herons led by as many as 16 (63-47) on two foul shots by Jordan Berko.

Albany (18-14) also received 16 points from Tristan Lisbony.

Randolph beat No. 2 Central Maine CC in the late game, 71-67, led by 26 points from Jaylon Calvin.

Check out the full photo gallery by Michael Griffin…

Top-seeded Great Bay wins YSCC quarterfinal

By: KJ Cardinal

PORTSMOUTH, NH – Theo Wolfe poured in a game-high 31 points to lead top-seeded Great Bay to a 103-74 victory over visiting Paul Smith College in the quarterfinal round of the Yankee Small College Conference tournament on Saturday afternoon.

Mpore Semuhoza also netted 21 points for the Herons and Ethan Arnold (Kingswood) and Ethan May (Londonderry) scored 14 and 11 points, respectively.

Great Bay advances to the semifinals to take on No. 4 Albany Pharmacy on Saturday, March 1 at Southern Maine Community College.

Check out the full photo gallery by Michael Griffin…

NHTI claims YSCC crown, No. 2 seed for national tourney

By Mike Whaley

CONCORD – The NHTI men’s basketball team swept through the Yankee Small College Conference (YSCC) tournament with three wins, all on their home court, to claim the automatic berth in the USCAA Division II national tournament, March 9-13, in Richmond, Va.

The Lynx (20-4) were the YSCC’s top seed and they did not disappoint with wins over No. 8 Paul Smith, 109-71; No. 4 Great Bay CC, 95-78, and No. 6 Central Maine CC, 80-78. In the championship on Sunday vs. Central Maine, NHTI trailed 43-33 at the half, but rallied in the second half to pull off the win. Tournament Offensive MVP Sterling Blakely led five players in double figures with 17 points on 6 of 9 shooting. Also reaching double digits were Joseph Cantey (14) and Dahsan King, Richard Hartley and Rahsheen Caulk Jr. with 11 apiece. Tournament MVP Dontaveous Elder added eight points, seven boards and five steals, while Terrian Wester had eight points and 12 rebounds. CM’s Logan Myers scored a game-high 20 points. 

Central Maine had a 13-point lead (66-53) with 10:30 to play, but NHTI went on a 15-0 run as part of a bigger 27-12 surge to come from behind to win the game. CM upset No. 3 VTSU-Randolph and No. 2 SMCC to gain the championship game.

The Lynx will be the No. 2 seed at the national tournament, which opens Sunday. NHTI earns a bye and will play Monday against the Sunday first-round winner of the Southern Maine CC/Penn State Wilkes Barre game at 1 p.m.

In the semifinal win Saturday over Great Bay, King and Cantey scored 28 and 25 points, respectively, to pace the Lynx. Wester added 14 points and seven rebounds. Mpore Semuhoza led the Herons (18-8) with 25 points,  while Dover’s Kingley Breen added 21 and Theo Wolfe chipped in with 14. Great Bay was a borderline pick to the national tourney, needing to get to the conference final to likely punch a ticket there, which they were unable to do.

NHTI rolled over Paul Smith in the first round on Feb. 24 behind 23 and 22 points each from Cantey and King. Elder added 13 points and Wester had 10 points and 17 rebounds.

Check out the full photo gallery from NHTI’s big win on Sunday by Cindy Lavigne of Lavigne’s Live Shots below.

On the women’s side, YSCC champion Central Maine CC, UMaine-Augusta and SMCC all made it to the national tournament.

The all-conference teams were selected, and several NHTI and GBCC players were honored. On the men’s side, NHTI’s Wester and GBCC’s Breen made the first team, while NHTI’s Cantey and GBCC’s Wolfe were picked to the second team. Earning honorable mention was NHTI’s King.

For the women, GBCC’s Mary Paradis (Rochester) was named to the first team and teammate Madison Lovely (Fremont) was selected to the second team. NHTI’s Emma Broadstone was honorable mention.

📸 Cindy Lavigne, Lavigne’s Live Shots…

While we were away…

This week, we completed a complete overhaul and upgrade of our server to better serve our growing coverage. During our outage, we provided photo coverage of 17 games! These were all still viewable on our social media outlets, but we wanted to make sure they made it to the website.

Below is a list of the games we covered with links to the photo galleries. Enjoy the show!

Great Bay CC hoop climbs into national spotlight

By Mike Whaley

Alex Burt has proven beyond doubt that you can get there from here. When Burt took over the Great Bay Community College men’s basketball program in December of 2018, he inherited a team that had never won more than five games and was in the midst of a second canceled season in which he used to recruit players for the 2019-20 season.

Things got better, but it took some time and some patience.

The Herons went 9-13 in 2019-20, setting a program-record for most wins. After the Covid-19 pandemic forced GBCC to miss its third season in four years in 2020-21, the team came back the following year to go 13-12, the first winning season, and win the program’s first playoff game in the Yankee Small College Conference (YSCC).

After a breakout 2022-23 season, Dover’s Kinglsley Breen will play a key role this year as the GBCC hoop team looks to return to the USCAA Division II National Tournament. [Mike Whaley photo]

The Herons took a huge step forward last year as the addition of Dover’s Kingsley Breen and former UMaine-Machias standout Theo Wolfe sparked a 22-9 record, a trip to the conference championship and an at-large berth in the United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) Division II National Tournament in Richmond, Virginia. GBCC came in as the 10th and final seed, upsetting the number seven and two seeds en route to the USCAA final four. Their Cinderella run ended with a 69-61 loss to Miami-Hamilton. Burt was named USCAA D-II Coach of the Year.

Great Bay is officially on the basketball map now, made even more apparent with its recent ranking as the number three D-II team in the nation in the USCAA preseason poll. The USCAA is a national college organization, like the NCAA, that caters to both two-year and four-year schools. While Great Bay is a two-year school, athletes there do have the option of playing a sport for four years in the USCAA for GB.

“Last year we were the sleeper school,” said Burt, a Dover-native who starred at Dover High School and Plymouth State University. “People kind of knew what we were up to, but no one gave it respect. We always felt we had to do more just to get seen by somebody throughout the league. This year it’s going to be a totally new experience for me, a totally new experience for all of our guys. We’ve kind of got a target on us.”

Breen, who earned All-American honors, feels the Herons still have a point to make. “We’re trying to still stay the underdog,” he said. “Historically we haven’t been up there with everybody. We still have to prove ‘OK, we’re here. This is not just a fluke.’”

GBCC’s Theo Wolfe was a key part of last season, averaging a double double. [Mike Whaley photo]

The Herons certainly have what it takes to make another run, led by three returning starters: Breen, Wolfe and senior Bryce Gibson from Auburn, Maine. The trio are the team’s top returning scorers: Breen (16.7 ppg, 5.0 rpg), Gibson (16.2 ppg, 42.5 3-point pct.) and Wolfe (15.4 ppg, 12.2 rpg).

The big void to fill will be that of two-year standout and defensive stopper Alex Taveras of Portsmouth, who is now a preferred walk-on at the University of New Hampshire. Taveras led the YSCC in 3-point shooting (45.9 pct.), while averaging 12.8 ppg and 5.5 rpg.

GBCC has a good crop of incoming players, while returning role players like former Kingswood Regional HS star Ethan Arnold and Dover’s Cam O’Brien could expand their parts in support of the starters. 

GETTING THERE

Before Burt took the job, there had been three seasons with three different coaches resulting in the following: 4-19, 5-18, no season. Nothing to write home about.

In fact the Herons had already canceled a second straight season when Burt took the job in 2018, which eventually turned out to be a blessing in disguise.

It wasn’t, however, pretty right out of the gate. “That year the idea was just to fill a roster,” Burt said. “The early going was difficult.” In talking to players and parents he had to, of course, tell them there was no team at the moment. “But I’m here to create one,” he said. “The selling point wasn’t really there.”

But Burt persevered and it wasn’t long before he was able to get a half dozen players on board, including N.H. Division IV Player of the Year, Hunter Bullock from Epping, Londonderry’s Ethan May, a N.H. Division I All-State player, and another all-state player from Epping in Dylan Desrosier, who had been on a previous GB team, and who hung around for four years and was part of last year’s final four squad. Another recruit was Jordan Williams, an all-state player from Maryland. The biggest pick-up turned out to be George Mortimer, a former Traip Academy star, an older player who had played a year at the University of Southern Maine in 2011-12 and went on to be GBCC’s leading scorer.

“Once I got some kids in the door, I started getting all-state kids in the door. It snowballed from there,” Burt said. “I was able to put together a roster that would at least somewhat compete in the YSCC.”

The Herons turned a massive question mark into success, going 9-13.

But then Covid hit, and the following season was canceled, the third time in four years that the Herons did not have a season. 

GBCC guard Bryce Gibson had a breakout season last year, averaging 16.2 ppg and finishing second in the YSCC in 3-point shooting. [Mike Whaley photo]

But GBCC made the best of it, as difficult as it was. The big positive for Burt was that he was able to double down on recruiting. If not for that Covid year, it’s unlikely that the Herons would have been able to get Gibson and Tavares.

Tavares was a big high school star in Portsmouth, scoring over 1,000 points and playing on several state championship teams. He went to Plymouth State, but never played a game. Several weeks into his fall semester he broke his leg. He missed the entire 2019-20 season, which led him to consider new options.

Burt had heavily recruited Tavares in high school, so he was on his radar. When Tavares decided to make a change, he contacted Burt.

Gibson, meanwhile, had played a year at UMaine-Augusta. They had a coaching change and he decided he wanted some change himself. He contacted Burt about the GBCC program. “I saw that it was a newer school, a newer program,” Gibson said. “I reached out.”

“That whole year allowed me to put some stronger pieces together going into 21-22,” Burt said. 

The Herons in turn took another step forward. They went 13-12 to achieve the program’s first winning season, which also included capturing a playoff win for the first time.

That brings us to last year. GBCC continued to forge forward. Burt added two more key pieces in Wolfe and Breen. Wolfe had played one year at UMaine-Augusta, but Covid and financial woes led to the school suspending its athletic programs in July of 2020. Wolfe eventually found his way to Great Bay.

Breen was a Dover HS star, who left Dover after his junior season for Malden Catholic, a private high school in Massachusetts. He reclassified and spent two years there, “trying to get a better education and better focus.”

Breen had some college plans, but they didn’t work out. “I didn’t have the grades I wanted to, if I’m being honest,” he said.

Breen and Burt had a connection, which made Burt laugh a little. It was 2016, and Burt was preparing for his first of two years playing professionally in Europe. He was working out at the Dover Rec. Breen was a seventh-grader. “I remember that kid would be trying to shoot at the hoop I was working out on and totally getting in my way,” Burt said. 

So when Breen finished up at Malden Catholic and was trying to figure out what to do next, he already had this unusual dynamic with Burt dating back to the Dover Rec when Burt was a young adult and Breen was a child.

Breen visited the campus and liked what he saw. “It was really family-oriented – a good vibe,” he said. “It was a second chance I felt like.” It also didn’t hurt that the team had several Dover players – O’Brien and Jackson Rutland.

With the addition of Breen and Wolfe, Burt saw the potential. “Those two players pushed us over the top,” Burt said. “We had a solid group with that 13-12 year and Alex being our leading scorer. We had some other decent pieces to keep us competitive. It pushed us into a whole other category.”

FINAL FOUR OR BUST

It didn’t immediately take off. The Herons went 5-4 in November, including three straight conference losses, but after that they started to come together. By mid January, Burt said they were all on the same page. “Everybody woke up on the right side of the bed one day,” he said. “We just took off. Something totally clicked.”

At one stretch, they won seven of eight games, including signature victories over Central Maine CC and Southern Maine CC, the defending national champion. They ended the regular season with an 18-7 record, and a so-so 7-7 YSCC record. In the first round of the conference tournament, they played Maine-Augusta at CMCC and pulled out an 86-78 win. They had four players in double figures, led by Tavares with 22 points; Wolfe had 18 and 13 rebounds, while Breen (12) and Gibson (10) also chipped in.

They sent them to the conference semis against Paul Smith College, upset winners over NHTI. They rolled, 96-67, led by Wolfe’s 20 points, 16 apiece from Breen and Tavares, and 12 from Gibson.

In the final, they met SMCC, but the run ended there, 59-47. Only Wolfe (14 points) reached double figures as the Herons shot just 31 percent from the field. “We did not play good offense in that game,” Gibson said. “I don’t think we expected the physical part of the game when we got to that one.”

“It was a defensive battle,” Burt said. “We held them in the 50s. They held us to 47 and we averaged in the 80s. It was my first conference final and all my guys. The gym was rocking. It was pretty fun.”

Losing, however, was tough. SMCC as the conference winner earned the automatic bid to the USCAA Division II national tournament. Great Bay’s season seemed to be over.

“We’re in the locker room’ we’ve got guys crying thinking their season is over,” Burt said. “We’ve got guys who are graduating unsure if their competitive careers are over.”

The thing is, Burt knew in the back of his mind that there was a chance they could make the national tournament field of 10. It is not a reach for the YSCC to get three or even four teams, so why not Great Bay?

Burt knew on the bus ride back to New Hampshire from CMCC that the selection show would be going on. “Part of me did n’t even want them to pull out their phones,” he said. “We weren’t guaranteed a frickin’ thing. We were a dark horse, a sleeper school.”

Burt was thinking to himself that they’re on their way home and he’d about to have his players pull out their phones and maybe be upset again. Then he said, “Let’s have a little faith here.”

So they pull out their phones, and the teams are picked – 1-2-3, right up to nine, and no Great Bay. “I’m going ‘come on please, this would be horrible,’” said Burt. “Then they shouted us out with an at-large bid. They mentioned our record, some of the guys, and our seed, and said ‘we’ll see you guys in Virginia.’”

The bus blew up. “”Everyone was just absolutely fired up,” Burt said. “Now it wasn’t over. All year long we were the school that was winning some games, but not being talked about. And finally we’re being talked about.”

The players’ responses were predictable. “It was nerve-wracking,” Breen said. “We were like ‘oh man.’ Obviously they’re going through the numbers and it’s no way, no way. It’s the last one. We finally got in.”

“We’re on our phones just watching the teams get picked,” recalled Gibson. “We’re sitting there for the 10th pick with our fingers crossed, hoping we get picked. Then it happened. It was crazy.”

Ethan Arnold was sleeping in the bus when GBCC got picked. “I got woken up by the guys on the bus,” he said. “That was a pleasant wake-up surprise.”

As the 10th and final seed in the tournament, there wasn’t a lot of expectation. However, the Herons felt good about themselves. SMCC and NHTI were also in the tournament, and they knew they could play with those teams.

“As a whole group, we believed that’s where we’re supposed to be,” coach Burt said. “It wasn’t the luck of the draw. We’re there.”

The 2022-23 Great Bay CC squad advanced to the USCAA Division II Final Four. This year they have been picked third in the preseason poll. [Courtesy photo]

The Herons made a statement. In their first game vs. seventh-seeded Villa Maria, they fell behind four points at the half. But sparked by Breen, they dominated the second half to win 79-67. Breen led the way with 27 points and eight rebounds, while Gibson added 22 points, five rebounds and five assists. Wolfe had 16 points and 13 boards, while Tavares added five points and 10 rebounds.

In the second round vs. No. 2 Penn State Mont Alto, GBCC jumped out to a 45-30 lead at the break en route to a convincing 75-58 win. Breen again led the way with 20 points and five boards. Tavares (12 points, 16 rebs.) and Wolfe (12 pts., 11 rebs) had solid supporting games, while Desrosier and Gibson combined for 17 points.

Now they were off to the final four against Miami Hamilton. The run ended. Great Bay trailed by six at the half, 32-26, and twice tied the game in the second half, but could not pull ahead. Their season ended with a 69-61 loss.

Breen had another big game with 22 points, while Gibson added 11 and Wolfe had a double-double with 10 points and 10 boards. Breen was named to the all-tournament team. “It was a turning point for me personally,” Breen said. “I just saw a chance to play against some great competition and really try to dial in. I thought it was great.”

STAYING ON TOP

Once an afterthought in the YSCC, Great Bay will begin this season as a team to beat. It’s a new look. “We’ve always felt like we’ve had to do more to get seen by somebody throughout the league,” said Burt. “This year is going to be a totally new experience for me, a totally new experience for all our guys. We’re going into this year, we’ve kind of got a target on us.”

Nine players return and seven new players join the roster. Burt is excited about the possibilities. “We’ve got a lot in the preseason to do,” he said. “We have things to adjust, things to fix to get us stronger and sharper. We’re making those progressions that we can.”

Breen, Gibson and Wolfe will be at the forefront of what the Herons do. Breen knows this season will help open the door for his final two college years. “I definitely feel like the Division II, Division I conversation isn’t out the door with the talks I’ve been able to have,” he said. 

The Great Bay CC men’s hoop team set a school record by winning 22 games last year and advancing to the USCAA D-II Final Four. [Mike Whaley photo]

Breen talked about some of his teammates, noting that Wolfe “definitely has that old-school feel. The haircut helps,” he added with a laugh, referring to Wolfe’s afro that is reminiscent of NBA Hall of Famer Wes Unseld. “He’s a great guy to play with. You get him the ball in the offense we play and he knows how to make plays. He draws a huge amount of attention on offense and defense.”

As for Gibson, Breen said, “him a the two (guard) that’s a 1-2 punch in the backcourt. He’s just a pure scorer.” Gibson has also hit the weight room to add some muscle to his frame

Arnold is another player who hopes to step up his role, filling the shoes, as he sees it, of Tavares. “I’m definitely going to play more of a leadership role,” Arnold said. “I’ll be one of the key defenders with Alex Tavares going to UNH. He’d guard the best player on the other team. I’m looking forward to getting into that role. I’m looking to be more of a lethal scorer.”

The seven new players include four freshmen: Joe Gutwein (ConVal), Stephen Gitau (Dover), Jordan Berko (Farmington) and Jared Biaya (Portland, Maine). Gutwein (6-1) and Gitau (6-2) are guards, while Berko is a 6-foot-6 forward and Biaya is 6-8. The rest of the newbies include 6-4 Mpore Semuhoza (a CMCC transfer), 6-4 Sean Murphy of Exeter (back after missing last year) and 5-5 guard Antoine Bailey from New Orleans. “I’m super excited about our new group,” Burt said.

Gutwein was an all-state guard at ConVal, and he is hoping he can help the team out anyway possible. “The guys are great,” he said. “Our chemistry is strong . This is a group that wants to be in the gym everyday. Kingsley, Theo, and Bryce, that’s our big three right there. They’re so dominant defensively and offensively. And that goes for everyone on our team as well. We are loaded with talent.”

Breen likes what he’s seen with Gutwein in the early going. “You can tell he can really play the game,” Breen said. “He’s smart, he fills the lanes. He’s just always in the right spot.” Gutwein has some personal physical adversity he must deal with every day – he was born profoundly deaf in both ears, accessing sound with a cochlear implant. “Honestly, in a noisy gym, it is difficult to hear,” he said. “My teammates and coaches use hand signals to communicate plays. I’m also super visual and always checking.”

The Herons open the season Saturday at home with a non-conference game against Quinsigamond Community College.

“Ultimately I took the job to build something special and create something special for these guys to take with them to whatever their chapter may be,” Burt said. “Now we’ve got to stay there.”