LYNN — It’s been said all season long about this Lynn Tech boys basketball team – it never quits. 

But in Friday night’s Division 4 showdown between the No. 8 Tigers and No. 25 Northbridge, Tech’s 55-50 win didn’t, necessarily, go as planned.

The Tigers trailed by eight (18-10) after the first quarter and 19 (35-16) at halftime. 

Tech coach Corey Bingham made a few adjustments, but, ultimately, told his team to just play its game. 

“That’s definitely not how we drew it up. We go into halftime down 19 and, as a coach, I’m wondering what to even say to these kids,” he said. “A lot of them are seniors, so I just tried to stay calm, cool, and collected, and told them that we just didn’t play our kind of basketball in the first half. I told them if we come out in the second half and play our basketball game, we can come back and win it.”

His boys responded. Tech exploded for a 13-0 run to cut the lead to six (35-29) with 5:13 remaining in the third quarter. 

“They blew the doors open in the first three minutes. They were trapping all over the place… that was Lynn Tech basketball,” Bingham said. “We just started to trust each other on defense.” 

Senior Jayden Welch led by example, winning all the 50-50 balls and converting his layups to charge up the Lynn Tech faithful. 

He said “our coaches believed in us.”

“We just had to believe in ourselves,” said Welch, who scored 16 of his team-high 26 points in the third. “We just had to play our game, push the ball, and get stops and steals to cut down the lead. Then, we took over in the fourth quarter.” 

Bingham spoke highly of Friday night’s hero.

“Jayden is a monster. He comes to play every game. He won’t score 26 every game, but he’s great at what he does. Today, we needed a monster performance from him and he gave us that,” Bingham said.

The Tigers cut what was once a 19-point deficit to one (41-40) to start the fourth quarter, but quickly found themselves down seven within the first few minutes of the frame.

Tech then turned to Giovanni Jean (12 points, 6 assists, 5 rebounds) and Welch. The duo scored all 15 of Tech’s points in the fourth quarter and capitalized from the free-throw line.

“I work on free throws every day. Before we leave the gym, we have to make 10,” Welch said. “We practiced that and we’re built for these moments.” 

“We had a long week off, so I made sure we practiced our free throws. I would run them and then make them shoot free throws,” Bingham said. “They’re big-time players, so if you’re big-time, you have to go and earn it at the line, which they did.” 

Jean, with 45 seconds remaining, scored a layup to give the Tigers a 51-48 lead. After a timeout from Northbridge, the Tigers forced a turnover with just under 12 seconds to go. 

The Tigers advanced to the Sweet 16 against No. 9 Georgetown (TBD).

“It’s what you want from your team – not to give up. Down 19, a lot of kids would just put their heads down and give up,” Bingham said. “This team has the ultimate fight in them, and they left it all out there in the second half.”

Bingham praised the crowd for its unwavering support. 

“The crowd – I’m still speechless about it. The environment of Lynn Tech today was amazing,” Bingham said. “Taking the job, this is what you wish for. Getting a home playoff game. Getting the city, your fans, and everyone here feels great. It’s a great overall win for the program, the school, and, most importantly, the City of Lynn.”