HOPKINTON, MASS. (WHDH) - A Hoptkinton basketball coach didn’t let cancer keep him from leading his team to the sectional finals Saturday.
Coach Tom Keane was diagnosed with colon cancer right before Christmas, and had to have surgery in the middle of the season.
“When he told us his diagnosis we were definitely pretty crushed, that’s a tough blow,” said senior Steven Maffiore.
Keane missed nine games, but his absence gave the Hillers even more to play for.
“He gave us a lot of motivation, like if coach is going through something like that there’s no reason we shouldn’t be playing our hearts out every time we go out there,” Maffiore said. “All of us had to play as one and play for coach.”
And when Keane came back at the start of sectionals, the team really hit its stride. The eighth seed started off with a huge upset over top-seeded Grafton and never looked back.
Hopkinton ultimately fell to Wayland, 61-49, but Keane said the support of the town helped him and the team.
“I was overwhelmed with the outpouring of support from the Hopkinton community.” Keane said. “It’s been a challenging couple months but with the support of the community I’ve been able to get through and my family has been able to get through.”
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