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Maxson's last-second heroics power Salem to improbable win

There are late-game dramatics, and there are fantastic finishes.

Then there are those ultra rare, simply unbelievable scenarios that seem hard to believe if you weren't there to witness it yourself.

That was the case at the Salem High fieldhouse last night, where Witches' captain Chris Maxson scored five points in the game's final 3.8 seconds to help the hosts pull out an improbable 51-48 victory over Peabody.

Not only did Maxson (12 points) win the game | scoring on a reverse layup with 3.8 seconds to go, then hitting the game-winning 3-pointer from the wing as time expired | but he also helped Salem (10-5) qualify for the state tournament.

"Chris stayed calm and focused in both instances," said Salem head coach Tom Doyle, whose team stole Peabody's inbounds pass and called timeout before Maxson's winning trifecta.

"It showed what we can do when we keep working hard to the very end. This shows we can win the close ones down the stretch."

Salem, which trailed by 18 points during the second quarter, got 16 points from Junior Lugo and another 12 from Antonio Reyes.

"You can't defend any better than we did," said Peabody head coach Chris Mastrangelo of his team's final two defensive possessions. "We made them make one tough shot (the tying hoop) and one nearly impossible shot."

The Tanners (7-10) were led by 14 points from Kevin Skop, 11 from Ryan English and 10 from Dan Mello.