Lange scores his 1,000th point in Canton’s tournament victory over Putnam

Canton senior Cameron Lange, shown last week against East Windsor, became the fifth boy to score more than 1,000 points at Canton.

CANTON, March 7 – It was an evening of milestones for the Canton High boys basketball team on Monday night. The Warriors won first Class S tournament game in six years with a 67-44 win over Putnam and senior Cameron Lange joined the select group of Warriors to score more than 1,000 points in his scholastic career.

Lange had a 15 points to become the fifth boy in school history with more than 1,000 career points and the first since Andrew Crowley in 2010. Lange now has 1,006 career points. The Warriors advance to the second round of the Class S tournament and will face Westbrook on the road Wednesday night at 7 p.m.

Lange has been playing varsity basketball since his freshman year. He had 24 points in a double overtime win over SMSA that year.

“Cameron was a freshman when I started coaching at Canton.  He is one of the hardest workers I have ever met.  Always the first in the gym and last to leave every single day over his four years,” Canton High coach Craig Archambault said. “He has spent countless hours at CHS, Valley Sports Center, and in his driveway working on his game.  I have been so proud to see the development of his game over four years and especially late in his senior season.”

Over the course of the season, Lange has developed into one of the team’s go-to players in crunch time. He had a career-high 32 points in Canton’s 74-68 triple overtime win over Hartford Classical in the NCCC Tournament semifinals. He sank two free throws with no time left on the clock at the end of regulation to force overtime. He scored a basket with 8.5 seconds left to force a second OT session and drained a huge three-point shot from the top of the key with 30 seconds left to force the third overtime.

He has been Canton’s leading three-point shooter for the past three seasons. This year, he has a pair of games when he has sunk six three-point shots in a 29-point effort against Windsor Locks in January and a 26-point effort against East Granby in late January.

“He has all the skill and tools, and to see him now combine that with true confidence his really something I am so proud of,” Archambault said.

On Monday against Putnam, Jake Schaetzel had a team-high 18 points to lead the No. 9 Warriors, now 17-7 on the year. Lange had 15 while Luke Brown and Ethan Burke added nine points each. Canton led by eight after one quarter and stretched the lead to 20 points at halftime.

“I admire Cameron’s unselfishness and always thinking of team first,” Archambault said. “He is so close to all of his teammates and our entire program views this not only as an individual accomplishment but a team accomplishment as well.”

Lange is the third Canton athlete to surpass 1,000 points this season. On the girls side, senior Maggie Treacy and junior Emily Briggs have also scored more than 1,000 points.

The Warriors return to the hardwood on Wednesday night when they travel to No. 8 Westbrook (15-6) for a 7 p.m. start. Canton last won a tournament game in 2010. The last time the Warriors won two was in 2007 when they advanced to the Class S semifinals.

Canton 67, Putnam 44
At Canton
Putnam (44) Brevon Harmon 1-0-3, Daniel Porcic 7-2-20, Zacharty Cutler 5-0-10, Zach Evans 1-0-3, Kyle Loomis 1-0-2, Sebastian Ruiz 2-0-4, Austin Harmon 1-0-2. Totals 18-2
Canton (67) Rieley Hoffman 1-0-3, Luke Brown 4-0-9, Jake Schaetzel 7-4-18, Ethan Burke 4-1-9, Cameron Lange 7-0-15, Cam Neely 2-0-6, Adam Etyan 2-1-5, Ryan Enns 1-0-2. Totals 28-6
Putnam (11-10)        10  11  14    9 – 44
Canton (17-7)           18  23  14  12 — 67
Three-point goals: Harmon (P), Porcic (P) 4, Evans (P), Hoffman (C), Brown (C), Lange (C), Neely (C) 2