Senior Day usually means the end, the final home game of a given high school sports season. For Belmont High School boys basketball, Thursday’s 66-35 win over Reading Memorial High School at Wenner Field House symbolized something else — an extension.
The Marauders (10-8, 9-7 Middlesex League) rebounded from a 4-16 mark last winter to clinch a berth in the MIAA Division 1 postseason tournament by finishing with a .500 or better record.
“Our goal from the start of the season was to get 10 wins, and everything else is kind of extra, you know what I mean?” senior guard and captain Charlie Tingos said. “This is where we want to be.”
The top 32 teams make the tournament regardless of record, and teams 33 and below get in with at least a .500 mark. As of Tuesday’s Power Ratings, Belmont ranked No. 37 in Division I. It’s likely they’ll play in a preliminary round game.
“I’m really happy for the kids,” first-year coach Dan Burns said. “We’ve had a couple heartbreaking losses, and we’ve had some great wins too; that’s par for the course of learning how to win.”
Junior Braiden Dargon, a 6-foot-4 forward, leads the Marauders in scoring and rebounding with 16 and 12 per game, respectively. Senior guard Andre Chavushian and junior guard Will Murphy also average double-figure scoring. Senior guard Charlie Tingos and junior wing Peter McLaughlin also play key roles, especially on the glass with their physical play. The rotation goes deeper, too.
What’s different this year from the last isn’t as much the on-court product as it is the team camaraderie, Tingos and fellow captain Chavushian said. An uptempo style under Burns brings out their best, but both leaders pointed to the team’s upbeat vibe and chemistry as the catalyst for the turnaround.
“This is the closest team I’ve had [between] basketball, baseball, football, any sport I’ve played,” Tingos said. “We’re always picking each other up.”
Chavushian admitted that last year’s team, despite possessing talent, felt “checked out” by the end. Numerous close losses built up.
“This year, everyone’s bought in,” Chavushian said. “We have a way better connection on and off the court.”
After honoring the program’s five seniors, Belmont built a 20-point lead midway through the second quarter against Reading and cruised.. The up-tempo game was on display, with the shifty Chavushian leading the charge as the point guard.
“We’re playing way more freely,” Tingos said. “We just play basketball. It’s not strict.”
Belmont last qualified for the postseason in 2024 and fell in the preliminary round, its lone postseason appearance since the COVID-19 pandemic. The program’s last tournament victory came under the old regional format in 2020, when the Marauders made a run to the Division 2 North title game led by then-senior Mac Annus.
Burns took over the program after six years leading the varsity at Melrose and a tenure in Winchester. He inherited a talented roster and came in looking to maximize its potential. All sides call it a strong fit.
“I feel like I’ve already coached these guys longer than just this season,” Burns said. “We’ve got a nice, tight group.”
Belmont won four of five to start the season, the lone early loss a one-point defeat to rival Arlington. The Marauders followed by losing four of five, and then sandwiched two-game win streaks around a two-game skid.
The most recent two-game winning streak was a one-point win over Lexington, currently ranked No. 20 in Division 1, and Melrose, the program Burns came from.
A 10-point loss at league-leading Winchester on Tuesday set up the senior night playoff-clinching potential. Had Belmont lost, they’d have a chance to make the tournament when they close the regular season with a road contest at 4 p.m. Saturday at Lowell Catholic High School.
Postseason brackets come out Saturday, Feb. 21. The Marauders look forward to seeing their team’s name and perhaps pulling off some upsets.
“We really could beat anyone or lose to anyone, it just depends how we play,” Chavushian said. “I definitely think we could knock off a good team.”
