SCITUATE —  It felt like there were countless storylines entering Tuesday night’s boys basketball bout between North Quincy and Scituate.

Not too surprising since the two programs had been vying for supremacy within the confines of the Patriot League all season. This game also had history hanging in the balance with Sailors coach Matt Poirier on the verge of a career milestone.

However, when the night reached its conclusion, the Raiders left yet another rival’s gym with a statement victory. Zach Taylor erupted for 18 points and eight rebounds, while fellow senior captain Dylan Clifford added a double-double (11 points, 11 rebounds) as North Quincy coasted to a convincing 53-39 victory.

“It’s huge,” Clifford said afterward. “It wasn’t like a close game, we pulled away. They’re a good team, and to do that to them, I’m proud of the team. We played really well tonight. It was a huge win.”

Prior to the game, the schools were in lockstep when it came to the MIAA’s latest Div. 2 power rankings, with North Quincy ranked No. 19. Meanwhile, Scituate entered at No. 20, and the game was a slog to start.

Early on, both teams struggled to hit a shot, as the Raiders (11-4) clung to a 1-0 advantage midway through the opening quarter. However, following a full-scale substitution by Scituate (10-4), Taylor found a groove, helping the Raiders take a 10-7 lead at the end of the frame. He would rack up 10 points in the first half alone, as North Quincy took a 27-18 lead into the break.

Then it was Clifford’s time to shine as the Sailors attempted to take Taylor out of the game on the offensive end. With 3:20 to play in the third, Clifford pulled up for a shot from long range. The attempt ricocheted high off the glass, then fell gracefully through the hoop as the Raiders made it a 35-25 affair.

“It definitely left the hand a little wonky,” laughed Clifford. “I didn’t mean to bank it in obviously. Though, I did say, ‘Bank!’ I felt like it was long. When it went down, I just looked at Nate Caldwell and we started laughing. That’s when we kind of felt OK.”

The Raiders proceeded to embark on a 12-2 run from that point on, sealing the crucial victory.

Poirier was on the verge of eclipsing 350 career wins for Scituate. Following a long speech with his team, the coach emerged from his locker room, already focused on improving for the next game.

“We’re going through these steps that teams do,” Poirier said. “I just want to skip those steps that hurt, and don’t need to be undergone. You don’t have to get hit by a bus to know it sucks. You just don’t, and we just didn’t play hard enough when we didn’t shoot well. Credit to North Quincy. They looked like a bunch of guys who play a lot of basketball tonight. They just looked like they had chemistry. They knew exactly what they wanted to do, and they grind. We have to learn to do that, too.”

Scituate was propelled all night by Michael Porter, who registered a game-high 23 points.

“It’s always a challenging place for us to play down here,” said North Quincy coach Kevin Barrett. “It’s always an uphill battle. I was just really proud of our 32-minute defensive effort. I thought that was the difference in the game.”