DURHAM — Even with star guard Justin Hojlo playing at far less than 100 percent, Pelham didn't give up its dream of a Class I championship without a fierce battle yesterday afternoon.
It took a red-hot shooting performance by Portsmouth in the second half to prevent the Pythons (21-4 overall, 20-2 in Class I) from winning their second state title in four years, suffering a 61-48 loss before more than 3,000 fans at Lundholm Gym at the University of New Hampshire.
With his right shooting hand and wrist heavily taped because of an injury suffered in the semifinals, the high-scoring Hojlo (state-leading 28.0 points per game) focused more on playmaking.
Through three quarters, Hojlo (10 points, eight assists) helped keep the No. 1-seed Pythons in the lead, 37-36, against a talented Portsmouth club that split with the Pythons during the regular season.
But sixth-seeded Portsmouth (16-6), which had struggled early in the game, turned into a shooting machine in the fourth quarter. Led by high scorer John Mulvey, who scored 15 of his game-high 26 points in the final period, the Clippers were six of eight from the floor and 11 of 15 from the free throw line.
"They just made a lot of shots," Pelham coach Todd Kress said. "We had a couple of defensive breakdowns, but give Portsmouth credit. It was tough to stop them."
The loss ended a terrific four-year career for Hojlo. In those four years, he became Pelham's all-time leading scorer with 1,810 points and led the Pythons to an overall record of 80-16 that included a state title (2006) and now a state runner-up.
Hojlo's career point total is the second highest ever recorded in the region, trailing only Andover's Chris Vetrano (2,090).
Losing Hojlo will be big, but the Pythons return a pair of tall and talented sophomores in 6-2 Stephen Spirou and 6-3 Michael Lombard, who combined for 25 points yesterday.
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