The whole is greater than the sum of the parts.

The 24-0 Wareham boys basketball team left their personal egos behind once again and took the court on Saturday at UMass Boston with only one goal in mind: winning.  Their victory over Martha's Vineyard demonstrated again why this tough, cohesive band is still unbeaten and heading to the Division 3 state championship tournament starting at TD Garden on Monday.

Playing with poise and energy, Wareham opened the game with a flurry, jumping on Martha's Vineyard and building a 21-3 lead in the first 5:15 of the game.  Looking tight and a little shell-shocked from the offensive and defensive assault from the Vikings, who made their game look easy at times, the Vineyarders hung on for dear life.  But the fast start could not go on, and the islanders collected themselves in the last 2:45 of the first quarter, scoring the last 9 points and closing to a respectable 21-12 score.

"We opened like champs with that big lead, but we knew they wouldn't go away. They're too good a team", said Wareham's Coach Kevin Brogioli. "But we'll take that [early] lead any time. It put a lot of pressure on [Martha's Vineyard]."

Buoyed by their late first-quarter comeback, Martha's Vineyard kept up the pressure, closing the gap to 23-18 at the 6:29 mark of the second quarter. But Wareham senior guard Stefan Montiero sank the next 5 points to open a 10-point cushion at 28-18. The teams traded baskets and foul shots for the rest of the quarter, and Wareham entered the locker room at halftime with a 41-32 lead.  Darien Fernandes led the Vikings in the half with 14 often spectacular points, and 6'5" junior center Jeff Houde dropped in 8.  Houde had his hands full trying to contain MV senior center Charlie Everett, who matched Houde with 8 points in the half.

Wareham and Martha's Vineyard supporters who crowded into the UMass Boston gymnasium saw the Vineyarders mount another furious comeback attempt in the third quarter. With Charlie Everett leading the charge (6 points in the quarter), Martha's Vineyard was able to cut the deficit to 2 points (48-46), but once again Wareham fought back on baskets by Fernandes and Houde to nudge the lead back to 6 at 52-46 at the end of the quarter.

Wareham would open the fourth quarter with a lay-up by Houde and another 5-point spurt from Stefan Montiero to stretch their lead to 59-48, but the Vineyarders would once again cut it to 3 points at 59-56 behind Everett at the 4:05 mark.

Time was running out for Martha's Vineyard, however, and it was time for senior guard Aaron Baptiste to make his presence felt.  After scoring 33 points against Cardinal Spellman on March 7, Baptiste had been shut down by a tight Martha's Vineyard defense that rarely gave him an open shot. But his teammates put the ball in his hands over the last two minutes of the game, knowing that Martha's Vineyard would have to foul him to stop the clock and give them time to complete a comeback. Baptiste took advantage, hitting 6 of 8 free throws to close out the game and deliver the Vikings their Division 3 South section championship by the final score of 70-65.

At game's end, after receiving their championship award, Brogioli summed up his team's formula for success:  "This team seems to ignore the pressure. They play as a team, everybody knows their roles and they play for each other. They are a true team".

Fernandes led a balanced Viking scoring attack with 19 points, followed by Houde with 18, Montiero with 12, and Baptiste with 10.  Charlie Everett led Martha's Vineyard with 19 points.

The road to the state championship continues for Wareham on Monday, March 12 at TD Bank Garden in Boston, where the Vikings will play the Division 3 North champions Danvers.  Danvers defeated Saugus at the Tsongas Center in Lowell on Saturday by the score 53-40.