LOWELL, Mass. — The losing in the state championship became something of a punch line between coaches at Hoosac Valley. In four previous trips to the final, the Hurricanes left empty-handed in each of them.
But before another championship appearance on Sunday, they put their foot down. First-year coach Matt Larabee and former coach Bill Robinson had a conversation. They agreed it was time to put the jokes to bed.
“He said coach, it’s our fifth time there, we have to stop making a joke out of ourselves,” Larabee said. “We gotta get one. We can’t just keep going there all the time. We have to get one.”
For Hoosac Valley, it was fifth time’s the charm.
Behind explosive performances from senior stars Adan Wicks and Qwanell Bradley, the Hurricanes finally got one on Sunday afternoon at the Tsongas Center. The eighth-seeded Hurricanes completed a magical run, running away from No. 6 seed Holbrook in the second half for a 91-76 and the program’s first Division 5 championship.
Hoosac Valley’s previous four state final appearances came in 2003, 2009, 2015 and 2024. Larabee was involved in some capacity on each of those teams as an assistant, and he was emotional following Sunday’s long-awaited triumph.
“It’s tough to describe because you want to cry. I’m a happy crier,” Larabee said. “I’ve seen four losses. I didn’t want to see another one.”
His two senior captains – Wicks and Bradley – had also experienced a loss, both starters on the 2024 squad that lost to New Mission in the D5 state final. Like they have all tournament, they fueled another victory.
Wicks scored 29 points, and got hot early with a 21-point first half that included six 3-pointers as he displayed a confident and quick trigger from deep. Bradley finished the job, scoring 28 of his 33 points in the second half. He also finished with 21 rebounds as he dominated the offensive glass with bunches of second-chance buckets. Together, they overcame another scoring masterpiece from Holbrook star Allen Brown Jr., who scored 40 points for his third consecutive game of 40 or more points.
Hoosac Valley’s offensive show came just three points shy of matching the state championship game record of 94 points set by Holy Name (1973) and Charlestown (2001).
The game was tied at 38 at halftime before Hoosac Valley pulled away in the third quarter, outscoring Holbrook 30-18 in the period. Bradley feasted at the rim with second-chance buckets, cuts and drives en route to 15 points in the quarter, and the Hurricanes made adjustments to slow down Holbrook center Odens Massillon, who dominated in the first half. And even though Brown got his 40, it was inefficient. The Hurricanes did a good job of making it hard on the high-volume shooter, who took a lot of difficult attempts and had to earn points at the free-throw line.
Hoosac Valley led by as many as 15 in the fourth quarter before Holbrook gained some momentum, cutting it to nine with under four minutes left. But a big sequence stopped the Bulldogs’ rally, when junior Terrell Johnson – who had 13 points – made a terrific save on a ball going out of bounds to find Bradley underneath for a three-point play.
While the Hurricanes weren’t afraid to take 3-pointers – Wicks had more than 20 attempts from deep – including several quick ones in the fourth as they nursed a double-digit lead, they imposed themselves physically in the paint to make up for it.
“It’s live and die by the 3, I guess,” Larabee said. “But we have a great inside presence with Qwanell and Terrell, so it’s a good balance. Adan just happens to outshoot them a little bit more, that’s all. …
“Adan Wicks has been amazing in this tournament, carrying us scoring wise. Qwanell, he just does everything out there for us. He controls both sides of the floor. He’s our leader, our heart and soul.”
Hoosac Valley (18-8) went on a memorable run to claim its title. The Hurricanes took down top-seeded Drury in the quarterfinals before authoring a wild second-half comeback in the state semifinals against Roxbury Prep, erasing a 16-point deficit in the third quarter to advance. Wicks and Bradley, like on Sunday, spearheaded it all.
“This one’s all theirs,” Larabee said. “They said it all week, all year, whatever. When the state title was mentioned, they weren’t going to lose another one. (They) don’t want to get there twice in their career and lose both of them. They willed it. it was just all heart and will. We just wanted to win, we didn’t want to go home.
“We’re all heart, man. We win with heart. We show it.”
