Windham boys basketball repeats as Class AA champion
The Eagles rally from an eight-point halftime deficit to beat South Portland.
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UpdatedMarch 1
Steve CraigPress Herald
Twice as nice.
Windham High repeated as the Class AA boys basketball state champion with a thrilling 55-52 win against South Portland on Saturday night at Cross Insurance Arena.
A year ago, the Eagles beat Gorham in overtime in the program’s first trip to a state final. Against South Portland, they had to rally from a 47-39 deficit late in the third quarter and didn’t go ahead until Tyrie James went to the free-throw line — a spot where Windham had struggled — and made both shots with 1:32 to play after South Portland star Manny Hidalgo committed his fifth foul.
It was the Eagles’ first lead since they ended the first quarter ahead 19-18.
“Last game, I really didn’t shoot free throws that well,” James said, referring to the North regional final win against Edward Little. “So at practice, I really tried to dial in on breathing and taking my time. So I feel like after I did that, it just made it a lot easier instead of just rushing them.”
Soon after, another South Portland starter, Tom Maloji, fouled out with 1:09 to play, limiting the Red Riots in their final possessions.
AJ Moody scored on a layup from the half-court set to make it 55-52 with 55 seconds to play. Moody’s father Pat Moody, an inspirational part of the Windham community who had tutored generations of basketball players, died in November, just days before the preseason began.
“I know he’s here with us,” said Moody, a junior. “His presence on and off the basketball court, he’s with my team, with my coaches, with everybody that he loved. I just know his presence was here. He picked everybody up.”
When the game ended, Windham coach Chad Pulkkinen ripped off his Windham warm-up jacket to reveal a “Moody” T-shirt, to the delight of a large fan base.
“It’s been a crazy year. Just different mindsets, right?” Pulkkinen said. “We were underdogs last year. This year, we were coming in as preseason favorites and all those things, and we get hit with a tremendous loss. I was really nervous with how our season was going to go. Really worried about how they would stay together (after) such a loss, and without AJ Moody and his leadership and his strength, I don’t know if we get here. He was so good for his teammates.”
Creighty Dickson led Windham with 16 points. James added 12 points and Moody, the third of the three key holdovers from last year’s title team, scored nine. That trio was also part of a five-win team when Dickson was a sophomore.
“It feels maybe even better than the first time. It’s just so amazing to come back and do it for the whole community, the players, coaches and everyone,” Dickson said. “Five wins (two years ago). We were the lowest of lows.”
Added James, “It feels great. Almost unreal. If you had told us in my eighth-grade year, my freshman year, that we’d win two in a row, we wouldn’t believe you.”
Windham finished with an 18-4 record. South Portland, which won state titles in 2022 and 2023, ended its season 16-6.
South Portland’s Darius Johnson led all scorers with 19 points and Gabe Jackson scored 16, but his 3-pointer attempt that would have tied the game with 25 seconds to play rimmed out.
Six points by Jackson helped South Portland stay in front in the third quarter and Hidalgo, South Portland’s leading scorer, made a signature shot high off the glass from 8 feet for a 47-39 lead.
James answered with a 3-pointer off a Moody assist before the third quarter was over. In the fourth quarter, Joseph Blige, a key Windham reserve, scored two inside baskets, the second off a sweet Dickson assist and Dickson made one free throw to tie the game, 47-47.
A three-point play by Johnson and a backdoor basket by Carmine Soucy that answered a Dickson putback put South Portland up by three during a frenetic stretch midway through the quarter. James hit a floater in the lane to cut the margin to one. Then Hidalgo picked up his fourth foul when Moody took a charge, and was called for his fifth when he tried to strip James from behind at midcourt.
Hidalgo also sat out much of the first half after two fouls in the game’s first three minutes.
“We played almost the whole game without our best player and we had a chance to win, so you can’t ask for much more than that,” said South Portland coach Kevin Millington. “Fouls, exactly, and they were fouls. It’s just that we got handcuffed at the end there with Manny and Tom on the bench at the end.”
South Portland had one last chance to tie in the final seconds, but Dickson and company closed out hard on Jackson to force a tough shot that bounced off the rim.
The first half was fast-paced and highly entertaining, with South Portland leading 34-21 at the break. There was a flurry of five lead changes late in the first quarter and into the second. Despite Hidalgo being on the bench for over nine minutes, the Red Riots were not stopped as Johnson pounded the boards for 13 points, including three buckets after snaring offensive rebounds. Jackson, normally a 3-point threat, took the ball to the hole and scored 10 points.
Windham countered with seven players scoring in the first half, led by 11 points from senior Dickson. The Eagles shot the ball extremely well from behind the arc, making 5 of 10 attempts (6 of 13 for the game). Free throws were a problem, though. In each quarter, Windham made half of its shots at the foul line, finishing 11 of 22. South Portland only attempted six free throws, making four.
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AJ Moody of Windham carries the Gold Ball following his team’s 55-52 win over South Portland in the Class AA boys basketball state championship game. Derek Davis/Portland Press Herald
