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HAVERHILL – Last night, Whittier became the second Commonwealth squad in as many days to find out how tough the Northeastern Conference is.

HAVERHILL — Hours after learning it had earned the top seed in the upcoming Division 3 North Sectional, Whittier went out and won what the Wildcats hope will be just the first of their postseason titles.

The Whittier boys continued their dominance with a 75-58 win over Greater New Bedford in the state vocational large school semifinals. Andrew Wells and Marck Galva each scored nine points in the first quarter as the host Wildcats took a nine-point lead over the overmatched Bears (7-13). Wells went 6 for 8 from behind the arc and poured in a game high 20 points. Galva finished with 13 points and Justin Reyes had 10 points for the 20-1 Wildcats. The game was physical throughout. Greater New Bedford forward Nick Rego was ejected late in the second quarter following a hard foul on Gage Alicea. Greater New Bedford also had another flagrant foul earlier in the half. “I thought it was chippy from the beginning,” said Whittier head coach Tom Sipsey, whose club beat Greater Lawrence by 20 and 12 points in the regular season. “I thought our guys responded well by not reacting to it.” Winning today vs. the Reggies (5 p.m. tip-off at Whittier) would be big, but the Wildcats just want to keep on winning. North Sectional tourney pairings will be announced today. “At this point of the year, we want to make sure we are fresh and ready to go for that tournament,” said Sipsey. “I wanted to make sure that our starters did not play huge minutes today. The goal is strictly to get ready for next week.”

Marck Galva scored 17 points, leading Whittier to a 65-63 win over Arlington Catholic. The victory made the Wildcats 19-1 on the season, their most wins since the 1987-88 season (20-3).

Record-wise, Everett (4-12) doesn't jump out at you, but it's a big school with a strong basketball tradition. So Division 3 Whittier is feeling good about itself after dumping the Division 1 Crimson Tide, 65-50. Ryan Grant and Gio Gomez came up big defensively in the fourth quarter when 17-1 Whittier outscored the visitors 17-5. Justin Reyes (20 points, 15 rebounds) and Marck Galva (12 and 11) both had double-doubles.

Whittier won its final league game of the season, 62-46 over Greater Lowell. Marck Galva led the Wildcats with 16 points and 15 rebounds, Justin Reyes added 10 points and 13 boards, and Ryan Grant had 10 points and 8 assists.

Whittier Tech locked down its first boys hoop Commonwealth Conference title since 1995 with a 60-55 win over Shawsheen Tech. Justin Reyes prowled the paint with reckless abandon, leading all scorers with 23 points while adding 14 rebounds and 4 blocks. Ryan Grant had 21 points for 15-1 Whittier.

Whittier Tech locked down its first boys hoop Commonwealth Conference title since 1995 with a 60-55 win over Shawsheen Tech. Justin Reyes prowled the paint with reckless abandon, leading all scorers with 23 points while adding 14 rebounds and 4 blocks. Ryan Grant had 21 points for 15-1 Whittier.

Justin Reyes pumped in 24 points and Ryan Grant added 14 points as streaking Whittier improved to 14-1 with a 80-49 win over Minuteman.

Whittier raced out to a 17-point halftime lead and held on for a 57-49 victory over Mystic Valley. With 14 points apiece, junior Andrew Wells hit on four 3-pointers while classmate Justin Reyes drained six free throws.