Caden Sullivan delivers Franklin basketball 1st championship with 31 points in title game
LOWELL — Caden Sullivan cradled the Massachusetts-shaped state championship trophy under one arm as he pointed one finger to the sky. Blue medical tape wrapped around wounds both above and below his right elbow. Franklin's senior captain pointed one finger to the sky while green clad members of the Panthers student section pawed at his head and shoulders, trying to grasp greatness.
Sullivan scored Franklin's last 10 points to seal a 55-52 win over Newton North in the Division 1 state championship game, delivering the Panthers their first title Sunday night. He poured in 31 points, one of the 30 highest individual scoring performances in boys state championship history.
"We wanted the ball in his hands down the stretch, simple as that," Franklin coach CJ Neely said.
Sullivan only hit one 3. Fearless all year, he lived in the lane, beating defenders off an unorthodox dribble and finishing through contact, most of it called. Some of it not. The Endicott commit made 8-of-10 free throws and the three most important ones.
"He has a competitive edge. That's probably why we're such good friends. We're both competitors," said Newton North senior Teagan Swint, who played AAU with Sullivan for years. "We both wanted it. He wanted it, I wanted it. You know when he's on your team, when you're playing against him, he's such a competitor."
Sullivan gave the Panthers a 52-48 lead with 2 minutes, 1 second remaining after tapping in a miss midair. Newton North increased its defensive pressure and forced a steal that led to a wide open dunk by Teagan Swint, the Tigers' McDonalds' All-American nominee bound for Johns Hopkins. He finished with 24 points, 11 in the fourth quarter.
The longtime friends traded baskets over the final five minutes, Swint trying to conjure a comeback and Sullivan holding the Tigers at bay. When Franklin called a timeout to inbound the ball with 20.1 seconds remaining and a two-point lead, Neely asked his team what they wanted to do with the ball. The Panthers said, "Give it to Caden."
"He's our leader. We just let him do what he does," Franklin senior Jake Olmstead said.
Newton North fouled Sullivan quickly, trying to extend the game. He missed the first free throw with 20.1 seconds left but sank the second for a three-point advantage. The Tigers scored quickly with a pass to Nicholas Spinelli and fouled Sullivan again with 6.1 seconds remaining.
He took a step back and breathed. The noise faded. Two shots snapped the net. Newton North missed a last-second heave, and Sullivan chest bumped his teammates in jubilation.
"My four years here, I knew it would come down to it at some point," Sullivan said. "I wanted that ball in my hands no matter what."
A year ago he sat on the court with tears in his eyes after Franklin lost to Worcester North in the state final. The Panthers graduated eight seniors, including the league MVP. It didn't look like they'd return given what they lost.
"Coming into the year, I was a doubter of the team," Sullivan said.
Sullivan proved himself and the other doubters wrong. He set Franklin's single-season scoring record and notched his 1,000th career point. None of it meant anything with the trophy in his hands.
"I just care about winning this right here," Sullivan said.
Contact Kyle Grabowski at kgrabowski@gannett.com. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @kylegrbwsk.
This article originally appeared on The Milford Daily News: Caden Sullivan caps great Franklin basketball senior year with title
Topics
-
Caden Sullivan and Teagan Swint will pause friendship for D1 basketball state championship
Franklin's Caden Sullivan and Newton North's Teagan Swint played on the same AAU team and are great friends. They'll play for a D1 state title Sunday.Yahoo Sports - 3d -
Sherwood boys basketball falls in title game
COLLEGE PARK, Md. (DC News Now) — After an incredible season in the Maryland 3A, the Sherwood boys basketball team fell in the state title game to Baltimore City College Saturday, 70-61. “We had a ...Yahoo Sports - 1d -
Fantastic finishes in Big Ten semifinals deliver March Madness feel heading into championship game
Tre Donaldson made the drive of his life on Saturday, going the length of the floor for a buzzer-beating layup to send No. 22 Michigan into the Big Ten Tournament title game. Michigan State guard ...Yahoo Sports - 1d -
Class 6A boys basketball: Deer Creek defeats Tulsa Union to win first state title since 1974
Deer Creek won its first state championship since 1974 after defeating Tulsa Union 78-69 in the Class 6A boys basketball title game Saturday night at State Fair Arena.Yahoo Sports - 1d -
NC State fires coach Kevin Keatts a year after improbable ACC title and Final Four run
N.C. State fired men’s basketball coach Kevin Keatts on Sunday, an abrupt end to an eight-year tenure coming less than a year after the Wolfpack’s improbable run to the Atlantic Coast Conference ...Yahoo Sports - Mar. 9 -
MSU hockey to face Ohio State in Big Ten Tournament title game
The Big Ten Hockey championship game is officially set -- see who the Spartans will play in next week's title gameYahoo Sports - 1d -
O'Gorman rolls over Rapid City Stevens to advance to South Dakota girls basketball title game
O’Gorman will face Brandon Valley in the Class AA state title game for the second consecutive year.Yahoo Sports - 2d -
How adversity, doubters pushed Bartlett girls basketball back to TSSAA state title game
Bartlett girls basketball dominated Cookeville in a wire-to-wire victory to return to the TSSAA 4A state title game.Yahoo Sports - 2d -
Gilgeous-Alexander scores 31 as Thunder beat Bucks 121-105 for 10th win in last 11 games
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 31 points and eight assists as the Western Conference-leading Oklahoma City Thunder defeated the Milwaukee Bucks 121-105ABC News - 8h
More from Yahoo Sports
-
Change is in the air as Ohio State opens spring practice
Ryan Day and the Ohio State Buckeyes opened spring practice on Monday.Yahoo Sports - 6m -
'Fantastic motivation' - Maresca on Club World Cup
Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca says the Club World Cup is a "fantastic motivation" as his side look to win the newly-expanded competition. The competition has been expanded to 32 teams, including 12 ...Yahoo Sports - 7m -
NJCAA Region 20 Semis Report
Truth Norton of Howard CC is but one standout reviewed plus more, relative to the Region 20 semifinals.Yahoo Sports - 8m -
In major WNBA trade, Natasha Cloud goes to Liberty for first-round pick
The defending champion New York Liberty have acquired three-time All-Defensive team honoree Natasha Cloud from the Sun for the No. 7 overall pick.Yahoo Sports - 9m -
Imps forward Makama has 'crazy' potential - Skubala
Jovon Makama's hat-trick against Bristol Rovers is a glimpse of the "crazy" potential he has, says Lincoln City boss Michael Skubala.Yahoo Sports - 9m
More in Sports
-
Tee Higgins extension: A look at highest-paid No. 2 WRs in NFL after Bengals star lands record-setting deal
Higgins is becoming the highest paid No. 2 wide receiver in footballCBS Sports - 5m -
Change is in the air as Ohio State opens spring practice
Ryan Day and the Ohio State Buckeyes opened spring practice on Monday.Yahoo Sports - 6m -
'Fantastic motivation' - Maresca on Club World Cup
Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca says the Club World Cup is a "fantastic motivation" as his side look to win the newly-expanded competition. The competition has been expanded to 32 teams, including 12 ...Yahoo Sports - 7m -
Bengals working to retain Trey Hendrickson after giving Ja'Marr Chase, Tee Higgins massive deals, per reports
Cincy may end up keeping its star pass rusher after previously allowing him to seek tradeCBS Sports - 7m -
NJCAA Region 20 Semis Report
Truth Norton of Howard CC is but one standout reviewed plus more, relative to the Region 20 semifinals.Yahoo Sports - 8m