Nashua South players have tough time watching the final couple of minutes of Saturday's Division I quarterfinal loss at Pinkerton. (Telegraph photo by TOM KING)

DERRY – They were two teams that feel they can outscore anyone, anytime.

The difference? One had a 6-foot 9 senior named Jackson Marshall, and the other didn’t.

Marshall scored 43 points, including his career 2,000th, as the Pinkerton Academy Astros vanquished Nashua High School South from the Division I tourney with a 101-83 quarterfinal win at the Hackler Gymnasium.

Of course, the Panthers had their own scoring standout, junior guard Josh Caruso, who had 33. and senior point guard Zac Castonguay added 21. But that wasn’t going to be nearly enough to combat the Astros, now 18-1 and set to take on No. 5 Trinity on Wednesday night in the Division I semis. Their 101 point total is a tournament record.

“What did we score, 83?” Caruso said. “But we knew that’s what they do. They scored 100 the other night. They’ve got Jackson, 40 points a game, but they’ve got others who can score. It’s tough to keep up with them with all their weapons.”

Panthers coach Nate Mazerolle couldn’t remember anyone ever scoring triple digits on a South team.

“They’e very, very good,” Mazerolle said of the Astros. “Jackson Marshall, he’s unguardable. But he’s not their only player, obviously. They can all play. … They are a complete basketball team that just happen to have an unstoppable force.”

The No. 8, 12-8 Panthers hung in there for a while. They actually led 25-22 after one, but the Astros grabbed a 42-38 lead by halftime, and then things fell apart in the third quarter, after which it was 74-57 – normally a high school final tally. The NBA seemed alive and well at the Hackler. Charles Ludden added 20 and Andrew Brander 18 to the Pinkerton cause.

“It was a fun game,” Pinkerton coach Mike Dunham said. “We had our hands full. Luckily we started scoring and playing a little better defense in the second half. We really emphasized at halftime to get the ball inside to Jackson. They didn’t have any size to really stop him. … It’s obviously been a pretty good year for Jackson.”

“Turnovers, they hit some shots, we tried a couple of different defenses, and none of them worked,” Mazerolle said. “We knew all year long defense wasn’t our strength. Most teams we think we can outscore. But again … Score 83 and lose by 18 points. Basketball’s a little different these days.”

Pinkerton giant Jackson Marshall made life tough for Nashua South on Saturday, including Panther Daniel Karavanic, left. (Telegraph photo by TOM KING)

It will be different next year for the Panthers, who lose the talented Castonguay to graduation. With just over three minutes left, Mazerolle called time and gave his senior a hug, as did others on the South bench.

“Arguably a top five player or better than that for Nashua South basketball (overall),” Mazerolle said. “I have no idea what we’re going to do without him next year. As good a basketball player, and even better person.”

Dunham called the C & C duo one of the best if not the best in the state, and Caruso gave his good friend a hug at the end.

“That’s a tough one,” Caruso, who has one more year, said. “These three years, we built something that was unbelievable. Never will forget it.”

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