Windham High improved to 14-2 and moved a significant step closer to clinching the No. 1 seed and a quarterfinal bye in the upcoming Class AA North playoffs with Tuesday’s 55-51 win against No. 2 Cheverus (13-3) in Portland.

The top-seeded Eagles used an 18-8 second-quarter surge to gain a 34-24 halftime lead thanks in large part to the offense from reserves Conor Janvrin and Matthew Searway. Janvrin, a junior, scored nine of his team-high 12 points in the second quarter while Searway, a senior, made all three of his shots in the paint for six points. Windham was without starter Creighty Dickson, out with a rib injury.

“I love our bench. Our bench doesn’t get talked about enough but they’re hungry and ready to contribute and know what they need to do on the floor and tonight was a great example,” said Windham Coach Chad Pulkkinen.

Erik Bowen (7 points) hit a 3-pointer and Tyrie James (9 points) scored in transition to push Windham’s lead to 39-24 early in the third quarter.

Cheverus rallied behind 33 points from Leo McNabb – 22 in the second half. Over an 11-minute stretch McNabb scored 20 straight points for the Stags, who trimmed the lead to 50-47 before a key 3-pointer from Janvrin helped seal the win.