LAWRENCE — Entering the postseason minus a couple front-court starters might cause most teams concern.
Not so much Central Catholic — at least not in the first round.
With a first-time starter supplying the ignition, the fourth-seeded Raiders exploded out of the gate last night, needing less than half a quarter to take a double-digit lead en route to an 84-51 rout of 13th-seeded Malden in the Division 1 North Sectional.
Forced to play the rest the postseason without senior Doug Gemmell (concussion symptoms) and junior Nick Cambio (hamstring injury suffered in the regular-season finale), Central coach Rick Nault was forced to look to his bench.
He obviously chose well as junior Aaron Hall, making his starting debut, scored the team’s first four points and added a pair of blocks — in the first 90 seconds.
“I found out earlier in the week that I’d be starting,” said the 6-foot-6 Hall, who finished with eight points and four blocks. “Coach said I’d have to step up. I was a little bit nervous, but I’ve played a lot of games, so I couldn’t let that get in the way. I was just excited and pumped up to play.”
Hall’s quick start jumpstarted the Raiders (18-5). Central took a 13-point lead less than 5 minutes into the first before a 16-2 run to open the second quarter built a 38-15 advantage with 3:06 left in the first half.
“I went with Hall because of his length, and his ability to shoot the ball a little bit,” Nault said. “He’s got nice range, and to have another big guy in there in the middle to clog things up a little was a necessity.”
After Hall’s opening salvo, Central relied on its pressure defense. The Raiders forced 23 turnovers and limited the Tornados to 1-of-15 shooting in the second quarter, to quickly remove all doubt from the outcome.
Tyler Nelson scored a team-high 17 points while Joel Berroa added 16.
“They’re very long,” Medford coach Don Nally said. “Obviously (Nelson) is as good as advertised. He’s a good shooter, and (Berroa) is a tough player. They play defense and run their stuff.”
Playing with a lead that grew to 35 before the end of the third quarter, Nault went to his bench early. The reserves responded with 25 points led by Mike Barry’s eight and Austin Perry’s six. Anthony Crespo had four nice assists in the final quarter.
Next up for the make-shift Raiders is a home date against 12th-seeded Cambridge (13-8) at 7 p.m. Friday. Cambridge knocked off fifth-seeded Waltham 64-52 in the first round.
“That’s our team,” Nault said of the 13 players that saw action against Malden. “(Gemmell) and (Cambio) are still a big part of what we’re doing, but I believe in the other guys and tonight they stepped up huge.”
agateHed:Central Catholic 84, Malden 51
agateText:Division 1 North First Round
Malden (51):@zzAgate:agateText: Tommy Steele 2 1-2 5, Anthony Gilardi 8 2-4 20, Rodney Morton 4 2-2 11, Luvenge Fransois 2 2-2 6, Jason Surpris 1 2-2 4, Wily Metellus 1 0-0 3, Fabian Price-Hernandez 1 0-1 2, Michael Asfawa 0 0-0 0, Jensen Ayuk 0 0-0 0, Naleye Aden 0 0-0 0, Mark Roger 0 0-0 0, Steeven Leon 0 0-0 0. Totals 19 9-13 51
agateText:Central Catholic (84):@zzAgate:agateText: Lucas Hammel 4 1-3 9, Tyler Nelson 6 3-3 17, Jamahl Lopez 4 0-0 9, Joel Berroa 7 1-3 16, Aaron Hall 3 2-2 8, Mike Barry 4 0-0 8, Austin Perry 2 1-1 6, Alex Santos 0 1-2 1, Andrew Hamel 0 1-4 1, Nick Boes 2 0-0 5, Ryan Barry 1 0-0 2, Anthony Crespo 0 0-0 0, Neil Sheehan 1 0-0 2. Totals 34 10-14 84
agateText:3-pointers:@zzAgate:agateText: M — Gilardi 2, Morton, Metellus; CC — Nelson 2, Lopez, Berroa, Perry, Boes.
agateText:Next game:@zzAgate:agateText: Hosts Cambridge, 7 p.m. Friday, Division 1 North quarterfinals
agateText:Malden (12-9):@zzAgate:agateText: 13 4 17 17 — 51
agateText:Central Catholic (18-5):@zzAgate:agateText: 22 18 25 19 — 84
NFL Player Posts Photo of Himself Appearing to Pee on IRS Building
Are Sixers targeting Kelvin Sampson?
Recipe for Success: Phillies draft picks
Recipe for Success: Phillies at the trade deadline
Recipe for success: Ryan Howard
Phillies talks about struggling to win games
Utley on Halladay going on the DL
Is the bullpen in trouble without Mike Adams?
Mike Adams talks about his back pain
Matt Barkley on meeting his Fiancee in preschool
Matt Barkley on playing in Philadelphia
Evaluating Chip Kelly's practice methods
Larry Bowa on the Phillies' road trip
How does the hiring of Hinkie change the 76ers' coaching search?
Recipe for Success: Can the Eagles make the playoffs?
McCoy: Vick cheated to beat me
What did we learn from Chip Kelly's first practice?
Vick: 'I compete with myself more than anyone around me'
Bottalico says Cliff Lee's offense was 'beautiful'
McCarthy and Wheeler recap Phillies' win over Diamondbacks
Bruins' defenseman Wade Redden On Potential Return
Globe 10.0: Can the Bruins young defensemen keep playing well?
Kevin Dupont discusses Bruins-Rangers Game 2
Globe 10.0: Is Lundqvist the key to the series?
Blakely: Rivers to return to Celtics next season
Globe 10.0: Do the Sox rely too much on Lester and Buchholz?
Bruins Talk About Rangers Blocking Shots
Bruins' Patrice Bergeron On Selke Award, Matchup With Rangers
Julien: 'I'm a tired coach'
Seguin: Thornton said he expected something from me in OT
Rask: 'It's really disappointing'
Julien: 'We've been a Jekyll and Hyde hockey club'
Farrell: Dealing with some frustration right now
Julien: Bergeron line needs to step up
Thornton: 'We should've been able to close'
Julien: We were in it because of Rask
Bruins know they need desperation in Game 6
Lester: 'I just wanted to be aggressive'
Morris, Buchholz talk at Fenway
Bruins Hoping To Close Out Leafs In Game 5
