By Bill Gilman
FITCHBURG - By all preseason reports, the race for the 1995-96 Mid-Wach A boys' basketball championship should have been close. Apparently Fitchburg High didn't get the memo.
The Red Raiders continue to make a mockery of the division race, blazing through their schedule and leaving crumpled teams in their wake. Milford High became Fitchburg's latest victim, Tuesday night at the Brickyard. The Scarlet Hawks walked in boasting a sporty 10-1 record but slinked home on the business end of a 75-63 pasting, which wasn't anywhere near as close as the final score might indicate. With 3:25 left, the Red Raiders led 71-48.
"We're very happy with the win," said FHS coach Doug Grutchfield. "It puts us in first place in the league, (Milford) always uses a variety of defenses and its good to test the kids and see how they respond."
Ricky and Tito Morales led the way for Fitchburg (9-0) combining for 47 points. Despite a poor shooting night, Ricky still found a way to score 21 points to go with eight steals, six assists, and six rebounds.
"That's Ricky's strength. When someone's on him, he finds the open man," said Grutchfield.
For Milford, Mike Mancini and Jeremy Kearnan led the way with 12 points apiece. Moe Briscoe dropped in 10. Mancini, a 6-5 center also had 15 rebounds.
As has been their habit of late, Fitchburg got off to a slow start. Halfway through the first quarter, the score was tied 14-14 and Mike Mancini (12 points, 15 rebounds), Milford's 6-5 center, was pummeling the Red Raiders in the paint.
Enter Fitchburg's Jon Gauvin. The 6-7 sophomore helped Dan Schneider to even up the odds inside. Meanwhile, the Morales brother were starting to heat up. Two free throws by Tito broke the tie. Later, Ricky followed up with a three-pointer and a putback then fed Josue Negron for a layup and suddenly the score was 24-14.
Mancini tried to answer back but there was no putting a finger in the dam. This time it was Ray Gonzales' turn as he sandwiched a fast break layhup between a pair of three-pointers to push the lead to 34-18. It was 39-26 at the break.
In the second half it was more of the same. Fitchburg's high-pressure defense, led by Kevin Keenan (10 points, four steals) began forcing turnover after turnover.
On the other end, Tito suddenly became the focal point of the offense, scoring at will against the taller Scarlet Hawkes. The senior had 12 points in the second half, including six as part of a 12-3 run to start the second half, giving Fitchburg a commanding 51-29 lead.