After a doubleheader at Enfield High School on Tuesday, the finale is set between Northwest Catholic and Bristol Central. On Thursday, the clash between senior Donovan Clingan of Bristol Central, and nationally ranked freshman Badara Diakite of Northwest Catholic will happen.
It was a 57-37 win for Bristol Central over Windsor on Tuesday. Clingan put up 28 points, 24 rebounds, and six blocks to send Bristol Central off to their second straight CCC Championship. I spoke with Donovan after the win to find out how he feels about the upcoming title game. "I feel good", a confident Donovan told me after the game. The Bristol center also spoke on what excites him specifically about this years championship. "Man I just feel like, personally, I feel like people my size, that's what I play the best against, so with like bigger people, it would be fun, so I’m excited for the big guys". With Clingan being 7'2" and Diakite being 6'10", it will be interesting seeing Clingan face off against someone who is relatively the same size as him.
For the back end of the double-header, it was a 66-50 win for Northwest Catholic over Conard. Sophomore Riley Fox of Conard added 20 points, including a buzzer beater three to tie up the game at 29 at halftime. Jalen Hamblin (#34) of Conard put up 22 points along with plenty of hustle plays to add on to his statline, including a highlight block off the backboard. But the second half was all Northwest Catholic, they started to run away with the game, with a 15-0 run to begin the second half. Matt Curtis (#5) led the Lions with 22 points, and also for Northwest Catholic, London Jemison (#2) added 17, and both Gianni Mirabello (#4) and Badara Diakite scored 11 of their own.
After the regular season, Bristol Central sits at 20-0, and Northwest Catholic at 19-1. Looking at both teams, I feel like Northwest Catholic has more weapons then Bristol Central. However, Donovan Clingan continues to be the most dominant player on the court at all times. My prediction for this matchup is a 61-53 win for Bristol Central.
The CCC Championship will take place tomorrow, March 3rd, at Enfield High School.
Gabe Barile
Gabriel Takes
(edited by Andrew Fleig)
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