Windham Unified basketball earns win over South Portland through teamwork

By Matt Pascarella

In just their second home game of the season Windham’s Unified basketball team of Colby Schmid, Jack Shirley, Dani Iaconeta, Jacob Smith, Zachary O’Brion, Davic Ntibandetse and Mary Jean stayed ahead of the Red Riots late in the game on Friday, Feb. 9 to pull out a 58-51 victory, which they achieved through passing and a combined effort with every member of the team scoring at least once.

Windham sophomore Zachary O'Brion gets some air as he
drives for a layup during a Unified basketball game against
South Portland at home on Friday, Feb. 9.
PHOTO BY MATT PASCARELLA

“We were very aggressive,” said Windham unified basketball head coach Anne Blake. “They kept their energy up and they really worked hard on getting those rebounds – that’s what we’ve been trying to teach them in practice, and they finally put it together. The other thing we’ve been working hard on in practice is stopping, aiming, then shooting. They put it all together today. Passing the ball [still needs work] especially on breakaways.”

Windham grabbed rebounds right from the start of the game. Schmid and O’Brion then both hit three-pointers. The game was quickly tied, but Windham’s passing allowed them to get out in front of South Portland.

Soon, Windham began to build a decent lead over the Red Riots. The crowd went wild, and the gym roared with excitement every time one of the Unified players scored.

The Eagles’ defense was spot on with a block that prevented a scoring opportunity for a South Portland opponent.

Despite Windham’s big lead, South Portland held firm and was not far behind. Windham led 36-28 at the half. Halftime featured a dance break, which many got into.

“It went really good,” said Windham senior Dani Iaconeta. “We hustled out there and tried to get the ball. I can’t believe we won [the] ... game – that was my birthday wish. We tried to get open and my teammates did really good; we did awesome. We need to try to get more rebounds.”

The game had tightened up in the second half and eventually a mere four points separated the two teams.

The game was tied, 48-48, but Windham players snagged some rebounds and pulled away just enough, while its defense held off South Portland. Shirley tossed in a sweet buzzer beater to increase the lead in the final seconds.

“I thought it was fun and my best friend [Shirley] was in the game with me,” said Windham senior Jacob Smith. “What went well was that we played better as a team this game than we have in the other games; we passed a lot more. Listening to what our coaches tell us [needs work].” <