With tough second half defense, Canton rallies to beat Hartford Classical

Canton’s Ethan Burke (23), shown earlier this year against Avon, scored a game-high 21 points as the Warriors rallied to beat Hartford Classical Wednesday night.

CANTON, Feb. 8 – Ethan Burke had a game-high 21 points while Tim Keating had 12 points as the Canton High boys basketball team continued their quest for their first league championship since 1982 with a thrilling 52-39 win over Hartford Classical on Wednesday night.

The Warriors gave up 16 points in the first quarter and trailed by 12 points after the first eight minutes of the game. In the second half, Canton allowed just 18 points to hand the visiting Gladiators their third loss of the season in the league.

With two NCCC games remaining, Canton (15-2) remains in first place with a 13-1 record in the league, a full game ahead of Sports Medicine Science Academy (13-1, 11-1 NCCC). The Warriors travel East Windsor (8-9) on Friday to face the Panthers and close out their league schedule on the road against East Granby (4-11) on Friday, Feb. 17.

“This was a fantastic team win,” Canton coach Craig Archambeault said. “We were short-handed tonight. We were missing starter Ryan Enns and this was Luke Brown’s first game back after an ankle injury. He really had no practice due to the weather this week.”

“The guys stepped up tremendously,” he said. “We just keep grinding on defense and Ethan Burke put us on his back. He hit some huge shots in the second half.”

Classical (11-4, 10-3 NCCC) raced out to an early 12-0 lead and led 16-4 after one quarter and 26-21 at halftime. But they struggled to score in the second half as Canton held the opposition under 40 points for the eighth time in 17 games this season.

“Tim Keating was big for us as well in the second half with some key plays,” Archambeault said. “The freshman twins – Matt and Jack Rose – filled in for our missing leading rebounder (Enns). They were both fantastic. They really helped us on the boards and rebounded well.”

The Rose brothers combined for 17 points with Matt scoring 11 and Matt adding six points.

Canton isn’t looking past East Windsor. The Panthers beat the Warriors on a buzzer-beating shot by Marcus Goss to win the NCCC Tournament last March. “We’re taking it one game at a time,” Archambeault said. “It will be a challenge as they arguably have the best player in the league in Marcus Goss.”

With their sixth consecutive victory, the Warriors set a new record for most league wins (13) in a single season. Their previous best in the NCCC was 12 in 1985, 2009 and 2010 along with 12 wins in the Northwest Conference in 1963. Canton’s last league championship in boys basketball was the Northwest Conference Division II title in 1982.

Canton 52, Hartford Classical 39
At Canton
Hartford Classical (39) Jerod Frank 7-0-14, Tyreice Woods 3-2-9, Danny Campbell 6-4-16. Totals 16-6-39
Canton (52) Luke Brown 0-0-0, Ethan Burke 8-3-21, Grant Lange 1-1-3, Matt Rose 2-7-11, Jack Rose 3-0-6, Tim Keating 4-3-12. Totals 18-14-52
Classical (11-4)                     16  10   5  13  — 39
Canton (15-2)                         4  17  11  20 – 52
Three-point goals: Woods (HC), Burke (C) 2, Keating (C)

NCCC standings