February 27 and 28, 2026
• The Girls shook off an early slow start to take control, while the Boys pulled away in the second half.
In the first Needham Varsity Basketball Playoff game of 2026, the Rockets Girls Basketball team defeated Belmont 54-36 at the A Gym on Friday night, then one night later, the Boys team knocked off Barnstable 69-59. The Girls started slowly, but took control with a dominating second quarter, getting big contributions off the glass and were led by Senior Captain Eva Andrews, who scored 22 points and added thirteen rebounds. The Boys were led by Senior Captain Ben Marino, who scored seventeen of his 24 points in the first half.
The Girls matchup, pitting Needham, ranked #9 in the MIAA Division 1 Bracket, against the #24 seeded Marauders, was originally intended as a doubleheader with the Boys, who will host their first game Saturday at 6:15 p.m. against #30 Barnstable. The Girls started off the season with nine straight wins, but struggled after that, going 5-6 the rest of the regular season. They were ranked as high as #3, where the Boys finished after going 18-2 in the regular season.
On Friday night, The Rockets struggled early once again, trailing 10-6 at the end of the first quarter, turning the ball over seven times and hit just 2-of-6 shots from the free throw line. But that all changed once they hit the second quarter, as Needham outscored Belmont 18-3 to take a 24-13 lead to halftime.
Andrews, who surpassed 700 rebounds and 200 blocks in her Needham career this season, had a game high nine points along with seven rebounds, while Sophomore Ella Wigder added four points and eight rebounds. For the half, Needham grabbed 24 boards, though they only attempted two three point shots, missing both in the first quarter. The Marauders went 0-for-10 in the first half from long range and also struggled from the free throw line, hitting just 1-of-5.
The Rockets extended their lead in the third quarter, outscoring Belmont 13-10, despite Marauders Sophomore Sarah Gellar hitting the first three pointer of the game. Junior Rebecca Christensen paced Belmont in the fourth quarter, scoring six points.
But Andrews came alive offensively, scoring ten of her 22 points in the fourth. Wigder finished with eleven rebounds, while Senior Captain Dani Deroian added seven rebounds as well. Senior Captain Hannah Levine and Sophomore Lacey Williams each added eight points, with Williams also getting five rebounds and a pair of steals.
With the win, Needham (15-6) advances to the Round of 16 and a matchup at #8 Woburn, who defeated #25 Shrewsbury 62-44 Thursday night in Woburn. That will be played Tuesday, March 3rd at 6 p.m.
One day after the opening round win for the Needham Girls, the Boys welcomed in Barnstable, who was playing playoff games in two straight days, after their preliminary round matchup against #35 Shrewsbury was postponed several days due to Monday’s blizzard. Barnstable beat Shrewsbury 68-59 to advance to the Round of 32 and kept it close in the first half, trailing just 20-19 at the end of the first quarter.
The Red Hawks got big contributions in the first quarter from Senior Josh Jenkins and Junior Will Johnson, who each hit a three pointer and a pair of twos, giving them each seven points. The scoring stalled for both teams in the second quarter, with Needham getting a 13-9 edge and taking a 33-28 lead at halftime. Marino hit a pair of free throws with no time left, extending a three point lead to five.
Needham came out firing in the third quarter, with Senior Captain Foster Wilinski scoring eight points and adding to his game total of sixteen. Another Senior, Caden McNamee, hit a trio of two point baskets as well as a pair of free throws to give eight points in the third and for the game. McNamee started in place of injured Senior Captain Andrew Chen, who will miss the rest of the season after getting hurt in Needham’s second to last regular season game against Malden Catholic.
Barnstable made a run in the fourth quarter, with Jenkins scoring twelve of his 24 points and Senior Power Mendes hitting 5-of-6 free throws and scoring six of his fourteen points. But the Rockets responded in the final frame with Senior Captain Matt Cloonan, who scored eight of his fifteen points to clinch the victory.
Needham now advances to the Round of 16, where they will host #14 Bishop Feehan, who knocked off #19 Acton-Boxborough 85-67 Friday night. A date and time has yet to be announced.
Check out highlights from the both games, courtesy of our Instagram page:
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