PORTSMOUTH — Despite going on an 11-0 second-half run to get

back into the game, the Portsmouth Patriots fell short of a miracle comeback against Narragansett High Friday night.

The team lost a 44-42 heartbreaker in the Division II semifinals when sophomore Chris Herren’s buzzer-beater sailed just wide of the net.

The Mariners will now face Westerly, which beat Shea in the first game of a doubleheader at Roger Williams University, in the finals on Sunday.

The Mariners held Herren, the Patriots’ top scorer, to just 16

points for the game. Narragansett also dominated the boards and forced several crucial turnovers by Portsmouth.

Portsmouth (16-1) had previously beaten Narragansett (15-2) in December, 61-54, at home.

The Patriots started Friday’s game strong, jumping out to a 7-0 lead including consecutive 3-pointers by junior Matthew Clark and Herren. The Patriots started getting sloppy with the ball, however, and Narragansett capitalized with 8 straight points.

The lead changed hands several times for the rest of the first half, with the Mariners up 23-22 at the break.

The second half started poorly for the Patriots, with the Mariners scoring quickly and then forcing a turnover before senior guard Jason Palmer slammed the ball through the hoop to make it 27-

22 Narragansett.

The Mariners got lots of second chances on offensive rebounds and went on a 12-2 run to start the second half, holding Portsmouth to just 7 points in eight and a half minutes of play.

The Patriots settled down, however, and went on a run of their own — 11 straight points in five minutes of playing time, cutting the Mariners’ lead to 42-40 with 2:10 left in the game.

Things then got a little testy, with a Portsmouth assistant coach hit with a technical foul for yelling at a referee and some pushing and shoving between players.

With under 40 seconds to play, Portsmouth stole the ball and

Herren drew a foul while driving to the hoop. He sunk both free throws to make it 44-42 Narragansett.

The Mariners then missed their next field goal attempt and Herren held the ball for the last shot. His jumper sailed to the left of the rim as time expired.

'Cold night shooting'

“We stiffened at the right time and you know what, I think the game was ours to come back and grab,” head coach Joe Occhi said about his team’s second-half comeback.

“Unfortunately we had a cold night shooting. I think the kids were a little tentative. I could see it in the first half; we had more turnovers than I think we’ve had since early in the season. There were a lot of passes off our heels; we just didn’t know how to react. I mean, it’s a state semifinal game and there are a lot of young guys.”

Portsmouth was also not getting rebounds on the Mariners’ side of the court, he said. “That was another thing, and No. 22, (Thomas) Whitford. He was a tough matchup for us,” he said of Narragansett’s sophomore center.

The season’s not over for the Patriots, however, as they’ve been invited to play in the state open tournament starting next week.

“We don’t know who we play yet, but we’re still alive,” said Mr. Occhi. “The kids are a little down right now, but once they figure out we still have more to play I think they’ll be OK. I give them a little time to bounce back.”