NORTH ADAMS -- The Drury boys' basketball team isn't out of the playoff hunt yet.
That's the positive for the Blue Devils coming off a 65-47 loss to Taconic on Tuesday night.
"We're still not dead yet," Drury coach Jack Racette said. "We still need to get beat two more times before we are done. We have our work cutout for us for sure, we need to go on the road and win."
The Blue Devils were beat by a dominant inside game from the Braves on Tuesday. Taconic's Mike Taylor dominated the boards, recording 14 rebounds. Most of which, he was able to put back into the hoop. He had a game high 17 points.
Drew Scace also had a big night for the Braves, pulling down 10 rebounds and putting in 13 points.
"I wanted to win," Taylor said. "We need to make it to the tournament, so we needed this one.
"We just had to talk on [defense] and rebound well. That was the greatest ball we played all year."
The Braves opened up a 36-21 lead at halftime and continued to build on it to start the second half. A quick 5-0 run to open the third quarter forced Drury to burn a time out.
The Braves were able to spread the ball around well all night. Shaq Ardrey also reached double digits, as he put in 12 points for the Braves.
But it was all about the inside presence.
"We've been trying to do that more so probably in the last few weeks," Taconic coach Bill Heaphy said. "Owning the backboards at both ends,
Kareen Beckett finished with a team-high 12 points. Justin Girard had nine and Nolan Bird finished with eight points.
"I don't know what to say," Bird said. "To be honest, I'm pretty upset with this [game]."
The Braves were able to break the Blue Devil's zone defense by launching 3-pointers. Taconic hit six of its attempts from behind the arch. Even when the shots bounced off the rim or the backboard, Taylor or Scace were in position to grab the rebound and give the Braves two points.
"It's demoralizing for the other team," Heaphy said. "Whenever you can get an offensive board and put it back, it certainly establishes some sort of tempo for you and builds confidence."
Drury's Kareen Becket was able to pull down nine rebounds, but that was it for the Blue Devils as Taconic dominated the glass.
"That's been our achilles heal all year," Racette said. "Rebounding and our toughness. We have to find a way to bounce back."
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