The Bedford boys basketball team rebounded from its season-opening loss to Bishop Guertin with a 62-42 win over Merrimack, Thursday, Dec. 20.

Bedford evened its regular season record at 1-1 heading into the holiday break with the win, while the loss was Merrimack’s first of the season.

“We started off a little slow against Merrimack, but we picked it up in the third and fourth quarters,” head coach Mike Fitzpatrick said. “Taylor Grande had a big night for us with 25 points from the point guard position.”

Key to the Bulldogs’ victory was defense, Fitzpatrick said. They let up just 42 points after allowing Bishop Guertin to tally 89 in the season opener. His players quieted Merrimack’s leading scorer, who still managed 20 points.

“Jake Capistran, Sean Purcell had solid games defensively,” he added. “Even though he had 20 points against us, he had to work for it. Our full-court defense played well. We played with some good intensity.”

The Tomahawks previously beat Salem, 57-48, to open the year and Timberlane, 62-36, in the second game, both of which were also on their home floor.
Fitzpatrick also said his leaders, captains Sam Thomas and James Caparell, showed poise and made the played well in the win.

The Bulldogs are in the Queen City Invitational Basketball Tournament, and played their first game against none-other-than Merrimack, Wednesday, Dec. 26.

They restart regular season games on Jan. 4 against Nashua North in their home opener. The Bulldogs then head out on the road again for games against Alvirne and Winnacunnet before returning home Jan. 15 to play Trinity.

To continue to improve, Fitzpatrick said his team needs to cut down on costly turnovers. The evidence is in the squad’s first two games, he said.

“We turned the ball over a ton against Bishop Guertin and lost,” said Fitzpatrick. “We cut down on the turnovers against Merrimack and won.”