The Somerville High boys basketball team captured this year's Peabody Tanner Classic with wins over Peabody and Bishop Fenwick . - Photo by Kelsey Garrity

By Mike Rubin

Led by a balanced attack, Somerville cruised to a 78-67 win over Bishop Fenwick to win a holiday tournament in Peabody Friday.
Coupled with Tuesday night’s 75-73 win over Peabody, the Highlanders now stand at 3-2 overall.
Capitalizing on turnovers in the early going, the Highlanders roared out to a commanding 23-12 lead through the end of the first quarter in the championship game. Battling back, the Crusaders managed to turn the tides. While the Highlanders shot less than 30 percent from the perimeter in the second quarter, the Crusaders crept back into the contest, igniting a 22 point second quarter surge in tying the contest at 34-34.

Following a bit of adjustments, the Highlanders engineered a strong start in the third quarter, delivering an 11 to four surge to kick off the third quarter and managed to grab a double digit lead.
In the fourth quarter, the Crusaders closed the gap to within six at 66-60 with 2:30 remaining, but the Highlanders engineered a key 12-7 run in the final minute to secure the win.
Leading the way for the Highlanders was junior Johnson Thomas, who knocked down 18 second half points while Kevin Silva recorded a game high 21 en route to the win.
In Tuesday night’s contest against the Tanners, the Highlanders held off a late surge and pulled off a 75-73 win in the opening round.
Led by Silva and Thomas, the Highlanders staked out to a 14-5 lead in the first quarter. Capitalizing on its perimeter shooting, the Highlanders executed another strong scoring run and engineered a 12 point lead in the second quarter. Silva, along with Gustavo DeMoura and Stanley Juice delivered another scoring run as the Highlanders grabbed a 59-45 halftime lead.
Led by Jon Byrne’s four three-pointers, the Tanners emerged on a late run and managed to tie the contest at 66-66 with less than two minutes remaining.
Following a brief timeout, the Highlanders managed to hold ground as Silva knocked down several key free throws in the final seconds en route to the win.
Leading a balanced attack for the Highlanders was DeMoura, who recorded a team high 15 points in the win while Silva added 13 points and eight assists.
The Highlanders will aim to carry their winning streak into the new year when they’ll travel to face Burke High School in a non-league game on Wednesday night.