SOUTH CHINA — After a tight first half, Erskine Academy came out and played the third quarter of Tuesday’s boys basketball game against Waterville as if it had been shot from a cannon. Waterville looked as if it had been propelled by a rubber band, and those eight minutes made the difference.
Erskine outscored Waterville by 20 points in the third quarter, racing away from the Panthers for a 78-50 Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference Class B win.
Erskine improved to 6-6, while Waterville dropped to 4-7.
“Their intensity went up, and ours went flat,” Waterville coach Jason Briggs said.
Waterville committed 26 turnovers in the game, and the 11 in the third quarter helped the Eagles score quickly in transition. Erskine outscored Waterville 29-9 in the third. After holding a 33-26 lead at the half, the Eagles went into the fourth quarter up 62-35.
Erskine recorded 16 steals, with Jack Garrity leading the team with four. Pete Garrity, Devon Veilleux and Brent Merrill each had three steals.
“That was probably our best defensive effort of the year. ... We switched to a 1-2-2 (zone), and we made some easy shots,” Erskine coach Tim Bonsant said. “Shooting is contagious. We’ve been in a slump all year.”
Erskine’s rally actually started late in the second quarter. The teams traded the lead eight times in the first half, and with the score tied 24-24 with 2 minutes, 30 seconds left in the second quarter, Erskine went on a 9-2 run to close the half with a lead.
“They were beating us in transition. They were getting three shots to our one,” Briggs said. “In the first half they weren’t making those shots. In the second half they were. We were always a step or two behind.”
Twelve players scored for Erskine, with Jack Garrity leading the way with 19. Merrill added 10, with seven during the third quarter.
Nate Theriault led Waterville with 16 points. J.D. Gurski scored 14 points for the Panthers,

Travis Lazarczyk — 861-9242
tlazarczyk@centralmaine.com