Saugus boys basketball team controls its destiny after midseason surge

By Dom Nicastro

For much of the winter, the Saugus High School boys basketball season felt like it was building toward something — even when the wins didn’t always show up right away. Defense was steady. Effort was consistent. The schedule, especially inside the Northeastern Conference, offered little relief.

Now, with five games left and a playoff spot still very much in reach, the Sachems are exactly where Head Coach Joe Bertrand wants his team to be in February: still playing meaningful games, still improving and still in control of what comes next. “We control our own destiny,” Bertrand said. “That’s right where we want to be: playing meaningful games in February. That’s what every single coach wants at this point in the season.”

Saugus enters the stretch run at 7-8 after a four-game winning streak was snapped by Swampscott, 60-53. The loss didn’t feel like a setback so much as confirmation of progress.

Where did it put the Sachems? Needing to win three games in its final five: Northeast Regional, Peabody, Gloucester, North Attleboro and a team to be determined in the Hamilton-Wenham season-ending tourney.

“We had a lead at halftime against Swampscott,” Bertrand said. “We had a lead in the fourth quarter. We played physical. We trusted the game plan. We’ve been playing better as a team, and we kind of carried that momentum into that game.”

The improvement was clear when compared to the first meeting with Swampscott earlier in the season: The Sachems lost, 58-28, the first time around. “It certainly was an improvement,” the coach said.

That contrast has come to define the season. Early on, Saugus defended well but struggled to score consistently. As the winter progressed, the offense began to catch up. “I think we’re playing better offensively,” Bertrand said. “Knocking down all the jump shots, finishing in the paint.”

Even in the loss to Swampscott, Bertrand saw familiar signs of growth. “That was still maybe the difference,” he said. “We just missed just a couple of shots that we had been making in that four-game winning stretch.”

The four-game run that brought Saugus back to .500 wasn’t built on one hot hand, but balance and momentum at the right times.

In a 74-46 win over Mystic Valley, Ryan Shea took over after a slow start. He finished with 21 points. “He just turned it on,” Bertrand said. “He’s been doing it all for us.”

Shea sparked the game with steals that led to easy baskets, then stretched the floor with timely threes. That same aggressiveness carried into the Swampscott matchup, where Saugus led deep into the second half.

Oliver Hernandez emerged as another key piece during the stretch, especially against zone defenses. He had 13 against Mystic Valley; 14 in the Swampscott matchup. “Every single time Swampscott made a run, it seemed like Oliver stepped up and hit a three,” Bertrand said. “We kind of gained back our momentum.”

Bertrand credited Hernandez’s shot selection and execution against zone looks. “Both Mystic Valley and Swampscott played zone,” he said. “We just kind of ran a couple zone plays, got an open shot, and he knocked them down.”

Senior Ryan Dupuy also made his presence felt in the Swampscott game, finishing with 18 points and controlling the glass. “Ryan Dupuy was just a monster on the glass,” Bertrand said.

  Beyond individual performances, the numbers tell a clear story about the program’s direction. “Last year we had seven wins,” Bertrand said. “The year before was four.”

With five games still to play, Saugus has already matched last season’s total — and has an opportunity to do more. While three wins means an automatic tourney berth, two could still get the Sachems in provided it’s enough to put them in the top 32 in Division 3 rankings-wise.