As sure as spring, the high school basketball tournament is back with a flourish

By BDN Editorial Board

February isn’t exactly the most exciting time to be in Maine. But as we keep slogging through the winter dreariness and cold, at least things are once again heating up on the basketball court. 

Last year, the BDN asked Mainers why they love the annual high school basketball tournament, and the answers didn’t disappoint — including one from longtime broadcaster Dale Duff. 

“I would say, like a lot of people say, it’s just part of the winter fabric now. You kind of plan your whole winter knowing tournament week, then you kind of know what it’s going to be like on the other side,” Duff said. “I can’t imagine not being at the tournament. You see so many people that you might just see in February. You try to catch up and discuss things, it’s just a good place to kind of get together once a year or so. It’s my favorite week of the year. I really do think that.”

And why shouldn’t it be a favorite week of the year? There’s a lot to like: the high level of play, the excitement in the stands (as long as fans are respectful, to each other and to referees), the upsets, the energy and high stakes that come with playoff basketball are just some examples. The top teams in the state get a chance to live up to the hype, and the underdogs get a chance to surprise us. 

Often, all of that can happen regardless of the final score. Take the Wisdom boy’s team from St. Agatha, which traveled to Bangor with a small roster and bigtime heart. The Wisdom squad of only six players took on undefeated and top-seeded Schenck team from East Millinocket, and while they lost 74-21 on Monday, they impressed us and their Class D opponents in the process. 

“It would have been easy for them to drop the program but they didn’t. And they don’t quit. They’re competitors,” Schenck coach Aaron Hutchins told BDN sports reporter Larry Mahoney. 

“They gave us a battle today,” Schenck senior guard Mason McDunnah, the game’s top scorer, said about the Wisdom team. 

This battling, along with the great sportsmanship and respect involved, is a big part of what makes the tournament so special — not just in Bangor, but at the tournament venues around the state. It was also on display Friday night, when the Bangor girls teams battled through a tough game to beat Windham.

“I’m so proud of my team. Every game they just mature and they grow so much,” Bangor senior Mimi Quinn said after the game. The third-ranked Rams will take on No. 2 Oxford Hills on Wednesday afternoon at the Cross Insurance Arena in Portland. 

The tournament is well under way, but there is still plenty of court action to follow. Even if fans aren’t able to experience the excitement in person in Bangor, Augusta and Portland, there are several streaming options people should look into from the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) Network, WHOU and the Maine Public Broadcasting Network (MPBN). 

Our colleagues in the BDN sports department have once again been on fire with their tourney coverage, compiling helpful information ahead of time with a schedule and scores page, a broad rundown of everything you need to know about the tournament, details about how to watch most of the games, predictions for how both the girls and boys tournaments might play out, and of course the game-by-game reporting from Bangor. 

BDN photographers are once again on the sidelines to skillfully capture the action. Additionally, we’ve gotten a great assist from sponsor Katahdin Trust, allowing us to offer this tournament coverage free of charge. 

Like last year and all the years before, the players, coaches, families and fans are already proving what makes tourney time so special. As Paul Bouchard of Old Town told the BDN last year when asked about the tournament in Bangor, a defining part of that specialness is the group of people who travel from small towns to support their teams. 

“You can almost feel how much the experience means and how important this time of year is to them,” Bouchard said. That was true last year, it is true this year, and it has been true for a long time. No matter the final score, this has always been a winning approach at tournament time.