Newsletter #36...Tournament heroes
While the final chapters of the unforgettable 2026 high school basketball tournament will be written this weekend, it's safe to say that there have been countless transcendent performances to date.
While Yarmouth's Ian Lawrence, Cheverus' Kylie Lamson and Portland's Cordell Jones won their respective regional tournament Most Outstanding Player awards, several other players also stood out to me:
Carter Blanche, Scarborough
Even though Blanche's Red Storm were eliminated by Cheverus in the Class A South semifinals, he fought to the very end, scoring 15 of his 25 points in the fourth quarter, while also contributing six rebounds and four assists.
"Carter has played like that since he was a freshman," said Red Storm coach Phil Conley. "He never gives up. He plays until the final buzzer. He made big shots, big drives, big stops on defense. We'll miss him."
Matt LeBlanc, Yarmouth
The Clippers boys capped their unexpected run through the Class B South field last Friday with a 63-58 regional final victory over Medomak Valley, a team which had beaten Yarmouth by 33 points early in the regular season. This time around, while Lawrence and sophomore standout Adam Maxwell led the way with 18 points apiece, it was LeBlanc who elevated his game at the most optimal time. LeBlanc, who had to miss the quarterfinals with a head injury, scored 11 points, including a pair of timely 3-pointers, and added six assists.
"(Matt's) had a fantastic season," said Clippers coach Connor Hasson. "He just happens to be the fourth scoring option behind two big guys and a third-year varsity player. Matt on any night can be our best player. We lean on our combination of size and physicality and Matt's a big part of that identity."
Anna Goodman, Cheverus
It's not easy to be a coach's daughter, but Goodman is making the most of her final games under the tutelage of her father, Billy Goodman. In Saturday's Class A South Final, Goodman drained two critical 3-pointers and continued to play superb defense and offer up steady leadership in helping Cheverus avenge last year's state game loss to South Portland and advance to the season's final game.
"I stayed after every day in practice and focused on my shots," Goodman said. "I knew it was going to come. I was glad to see a couple go in. My teammates got me the ball quickly enough for me to shoot it."
"Yesterday, at the end of practice, Anna kept me there and took shot after shot and made 12-of-16 3's and I said, 'Can you remember this? She said yeah.'" said Billy Goodman. "She's worked hard since the summer and the extra practice has paid off."
Lucas LeGage, Portland
Every great shooter gets mired in a slump now and then, but LeGage's inability to make shots in the early round of the tournament, combined with a nagging groin injury, limited his enjoyment of his team's run. Saturday, however, in a regional final victory over Cheverus, LeGage, like all great shooters, eventually came out of it, hitting an early 3, then sinking two more en route to scoring a game-high 17 points.
"We've been well-scouted and I've kind of been used as a decoy the past couple games, but this was the big stage and I knew I had to stay up and stay relaxed," LeGage said. "That first 3 was great for my momentum. Hitting your first shot is always important, it relaxes you and allows you to settle in."
"Lucas got his confidence back," Bulldogs coach Joe Russo said. "That was huge. We never lost confidence in him. We kept calling his number and kept going to his side. He works on his shot too much to stop shooting."
State game thoughts
And then there were three.
Three local basketball teams dreaming of a Gold Ball.
Friday night in Bangor, the Yarmouth boys, who were just 1-2 back in mid-December, will play for their second championship in five seasons and the fourth in program history against a high-flying Gardiner squad. The teams didn't play this year. The Clippers beat the Tigers in the 2012 state game, a game which saw Aaron Toman lead Gardiner with 26 points. Toman now coaches his alma mater against Yarmouth and its first-year coach, Connor Hasson. If the Clippers can continue to play as a team on both ends of the floor, as they have almost the entire season, a coronation could be the end result.
"We had to play our best to beat Leavitt, then we had to be even better to beat York and be even better to get Medomak and my guess is we'll have to play our best game of the season next Friday," said Hasson.
Saturday, the state game action moves south to Portland, where the Cheverus girls will go for their third title in five seasons when they take on Hampden Academy, a team which upset Mt. Ararat in the Class A North Final. The Stags and Broncos didn't meet this season. Hampden Academy is very good defensively, but doesn't appear to have the scoring balance or the depth of Cheverus. And of course, the Broncos don't feature a player like Kylie Lamson either. Lamson was just named earlier this week as a finalist for Miss Maine Basketball. The only thing missing on her resume is a Gold Ball. Look for her to go out and get one Saturday evening.
"I'm well aware that Hampden plays great defense and is well coached," said coch Billy Goodman. "We have to watch a lot of film on them, have a game plan and have our best practices of the year."
The final game of the tournament and the season will see Portland attempt to become the first big class team this century to win a championship from the No. 6 seed when the Bulldogs take on Camden Hills and the state's most talked-about player, senior Nolan Ames, the favorite for the Mr. Maine Basketball Award. Ames is a deadly scorer, but it's safe to say he hasn't seen the likes of Portland's top defender, senior Loic Ramazani. If the Bulldogs can continue to impose their will defensively and get offensive contributions from everyone on the floor, they could capture their first championship since 2017.
"If we could pull it off, and it won't be easy, it would be one of my most emotional wins," said longtime Portland coach Joe Russo. "The journey with this team has been different than any other team. We had the talent, but the journey hasn't been easy."
Hoops Hall of Famers
Congratulations to the Maine Basketball Hall of Fame 2026 Class, which was released Wednesday.
From a local perspective, Nik Caner-Medley, the one-time Deering High School standout, who went on to play at the University of Maryland, certainly jumps out. Bob Davies, the former boys' coach at Thornton Academy, is also on the list and a hearty congratulations to former South Portland girls' coach (and one-time Red Riots) star Lynne Hasson.
Tom Chard, the longtime Portland Press Herald scribe, is going in as a Legend of the Game and speaking for someone who shared the sidelines with Tom for the better part of two decades, it's very, very well deserved!
Hockey playoffs heating up
Boys' hockey will be taking center stage next week and champions will be crowned a week from Saturday.
In Class A, top-ranked Thornton Academy, which has won 16 straight, welcomes No. 8 Bangor in its first playoff test and if, as expected, it advances, it will be tested in next Tuesday's state semifinal by either No. 4 Scarborough or No. 5 Falmouth. Cheverus/Yarmouth, the two-time reigning Class B champion, which moved up this year, is in the No. 2 spot and hopes to make another deep run. Cheverus/Yarmouth opens its postseason Saturday at home against the seventh-ranked Ice Cats in the quarterfinals.
In Class B South, Gorham, the top seed, blanked No. 8 Gardiner, in its quarterfinal Tuesday and will be tested Saturday in the semifinals by the fourth-ranked Kings co-op team, which features players from Poland, Leavitt, Oak Hill and Gray-New Gloucester. The Rams won both regular season meetings, by a single goal both times.
The Class B South Final and the two Class A state semifinals are Tuesday at times to be announced at the Cross Insurance Arena. The state finals are Saturday, March 7, at the same location.
In case you missed it...
Game stories from the past week...
Portland boys upset Sanford in semifinals
Cheverus boys down Scarborough in semifinals
Yarmouth boys punch state game ticket with win over Medomak Valley
Cheverus girls end South Portland's reign, win Class A South title
Portland boys complete regional title run with win over Cheverus
Greely hockey ousted in quarterfinals
Media
Tuesday's WGAN radio spot with Matt Gagnon:
https://wgan.com/morning-news/hoffers-high-school-sports-23/
Last week's Middays with Mannix and Mannix spot:
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During last week's Cheverus-Scarborough boys' basketball semifinal, Greg Levinsky was kind enough to interview me at halftime. You can find this on the WHOU site.
Features
Hoffer's High School Sports, in conjunction with cPort Credit Union, named Portland boys' basketball senior Loic Ramazani our Athlete of the Week.
Michael Hoffer
Tuesday brought a final regular season Super-Six poll for boys' hockey.
Michael Hoffer
Thursday's Hoffer's High School Sports Podcast featured a look back at the high school basketball regional tournament and interviews with the coach of the Class B South champion boys, Yarmouth's Connor Hasson, the coach of the Class A South champion boys, Portland's Joe Russo, along with one his top players, Loic Ramazani, and the coach of the Class A South champion girls, Cheverus' Billy Goodman, along with his daughter and team captain, Anna Goodman.
Michael Hoffer
See you right back here next Friday.
Enjoy the weekend, everyone.
Michael Hoffer can be reached at mhoffersports@yahoo.com
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