Commonwealth Motors Christmas Classic wrap-up

NORTH ANDOVER — Andover battled valiantly in the semifinals of the 2025 Commonwealth Motors Christmas Classic, but it was not to be.

Beverly and Central Catholic basked in the glory of Tuesday’s final but the semi matchup between Beverly and Andover had all the makings of a classic.

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Both teams featured a potential All-Scholastic guard with Warriors’ Eagle-Tribune Super Teamer Josh Roux and Panthers’ reigning Salem News Player of the Year Jacob Klass.

Roux may have won the battle, claiming game-high scoring honors with 25 points. But Klass, who netted 18 of his own, had some reinforcements.

Beverly’s balance ultimately made the difference.

“It’s always the next man picking each other up. It’s like a brotherhood going here, and we love it,” said Klass, who had three other teammates scoring between 12 and 17 points.

The Panthers led at all four junctures, turning a 16-14 lead into a 36-29 halftime advantage. The margin moved to a dozen after three, and Andover never really threatened.

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Charlie Tutwiler had 13 points for Andover, now 4-1, but no other Warrior collected double figures.

Andover will now head to the third-place game on Tuesday, facing Greater Lawrence Tech.

Reggies fall short

Central’s Javi Lopez might have had the best half of basketball in his sparkling four-year career on Sunday night.

The returning Eagle-Tribune Player of the Year delivered 22 of his 31 points before the break as Central steamed to a 38-20 halftime lead.

Things were physical – and Lopez loved it.

“They’re a great team, very well-coached. I knew it would be a blood bath from the beginning. We all grew up together,” he said. “It’s like when we play Lawrence – fouls, a gritty game, and I knew that was what it was going to be coming out of the gate. We came with the right mentality and got things done.”

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Greater Lawrence Tech, a state quarterfinalist in Division 3 a year ago, just couldn’t match the moment. Central was fazed in from the start, a fact that had to please Lopez.

“For sure, that was the plan all along. We’ve haven’t had a statement win since the season started, so this was a big one,” he said.

Amarian Lopes was the only other scorer to reach double figures in the game. He finished with 14 for the Reggies.