AUGUSTA — It’s not the traditional start date, but the newly laid floors, smell of fresh chicken tenders and Maine Principals’ Association labeling on press row left no doubt: Tournament time is here.

Wednesday marked the start of play at the Augusta Civic Center with the first Class S South regional quarterfinal games. Here are four takeaways from the afternoon and evening.

A NEW TOURNEY BEGINNING

For years, Maine’s smallest schools started play on Monday of February break week or the Saturday leading into it. Not so this year, and with Forest Hills in school Wednesday, longtime boys basketball coach Anthony Amero had a sudden realization.

“I was teaching third-graders on the computer and I realize, ‘Wait, I’ve got to catch a bus to the Civic Center,’” Amero said. “It was different but I’ll tell you what: I think it’s great. Being here for an afternoon game instead of in the morning, our kids were amped. It felt like a championship game coming here.”

There were varying sentiments about the new arrangement as Class S teams came to Augusta. Some called the tournament feel similar, while others were less enthusiastic after having grown accustomed to the old Class D schedule.

A member of Greenville’s state title-winning girls team in 2020, Tiegan Murray has fond memories in Augusta. Even though the start is now a Wednesday and Class D is now S, Murray, now Greenville’s coach, feels the magic is still there.

“Having it not during break is a little weird, but it still feels like tourney time,” Murray said. “We were at school until 11 today, and then we had a pep rally and a little send-off. … I really like what they’ve done with Class S; it’s something we’re excited about.”

Although Forest Hills’ Jaxson Desjardins agreed with Amero, the reaction at Somerset County’s other Class S school, Valley, was different. Boys coach Mike Staples and senior Harry Louis said they preferred the old format, while girls coach Gordon Hartwell and sophomore Liana Hartwell called the Wednesday night game an adjustment.

“I think having school the same day made it a little bit different, but we just focused all day on being mentally ready to play,” Liana Hartwell said. “Once we got out here, we just stayed focused and played our game.”

A DESJARDINS LEGACY CONTINUES

The Desjardins family keeps cranking out shooters — and as was clear after one of Jaxson Desjardins’ many baskets Wednesday, it can be tough to keep track of them all.

After a Desjardins 3-pointer in the third quarter of the Forest Hills boys’ 77-55 win over Temple Academy, public-address announcer Mike Hopkins inadvertently referred to Jaxson as “Mason.” With the sophomore possessing the same scoring acumen as his older brothers, Hopkins’ miscue was understandable.

“I didn’t hear it, but we were laughing about it in the locker room when (my teammates) told me,” Desjardins said. “It’s really cool. I got to watch them and follow them around, and now that it’s my turn, they’re supporting me.”

Desjardins scored 36 points, hardly unusual for an underclassman who’s already reached 1,000 for his career. His success follows that of Parker, a 2,085-point scorer who graduated in 2021, and Mason, a 2023 graduate who finished with 1,682.

Like his brothers, Jaxson Desjardins is a premier shooter. The family has a shooting machine set up in its home, and the brothers put it to good use.

“Five hundred shots per night, that’s the goal,” said Desjardins, who hit five 3-pointers Wednesday. “You’ve just got to keep practicing at it — working at it as much as you can.”

VALLEY BOYS, GIRLS AS GOOD AS ADVERTISED

The Valley boys and girls entered the tournament as heavy favorites to win regional and state championships. They showed why, the boys beating Greenville 70-16 and the girls topping Rangeley 82-13.

The Valley boys (17-2) forced the Lakers into 27 turnovers, taking a 41-2 lead into halftime. The Cavaliers held Greenville without a point from the 3:33 mark of the first quarter to the 4:47 mark of the third.

“We are defensive-driven; our offense runs on our defense, and if we get stagnant defensively, we get stagnant offensively,” Staples said. “I preach to them constantly that we’ve got to get out there, shut them down, and that will drive our offense, and it does.”

What the Valley girls (18-1) did might have been even more impressive. The Cavaliers forced 37 turnovers and recorded 30 steals — 12 by Liana Hartwell — and led 53-1 at one point to cruise to the semis.

RANGELEY’S MOMENTOUS RETURN

Despite the loss, just being here was a huge occasion for the Rangeley girls. Formerly a powerhouse in girls basketball, the Lakers went three years without a team from 2022-25 before finally returning to the court this winter.

At the start of the year, Rangeley coach Chip Smith said, the Lakers were expected to be the one team in the nine-team class that didn’t make the tournament. Rangeley beat those odds, and now, reaching this stage can be a building block.

“For us to be back here where Rangeley lore has been, it’s huge for us,” Smith said. “I told the girls to cherish it because not everyone gets this opportunity. We got here, and next year our goal is to be back here and win a game.”

Gov. Maura Healey testified Wednesday before the Joint Ways and Means Committee on her $63.4 billion FY27 budget proposal, kicking off testimony by blaming President Donald Trump for the state’s economic challenges before taking questions from lawmakers.

Healey immediately went after Trump when addressing the committee, blaming his cuts to federal COVID relief funding and other programs, as well as his tariffs on Canadian goods for the Bay State’s economic woes. The governor used a line she repeated during her testimony: “Donald Trump has made cuts and caused chaos.”

“Over the past three years, we’ve worked together collaboratively and constructively through a period marked by significant physical challenges. Federal pandemic funding went away altogether. The cost of everything nationwide has gone up. Donald Trump cut funding and caused chaos. And in spite of these challenges, we were able to protect the taxpayer,” Healey said. She highlighted the different priorities set forth in her proposed budget before going back to the “challenges” presented by Trump.

“In the past year, Donald Trump has essentially taken a hatchet to state budgets across the country. In Massachusetts alone, $3.7 billion has been stripped away. That includes over $1.1 billion in cuts to healthcare, cuts to food programs that feed kids in school and seniors at home, cuts to public safety and emergency response, public health and disease prevention, broadband access, energy supply, you name it. And at the same time, the President’s tariffs continue to drive costs and prices up,” she said.

Healey went on to claim that Trump’s federal cuts and numerous tariffs brought the potential for a double-digit increase in state spending, saying “but, I wasn’t going to let that happen.”

Healey’s budget plan would hike spending by 3.8% over the FY26 budget she signed over the summer with tax revenues projected to rise by just 2.9%. But Healey continues to call it a $62.8 billion budget proposal with a 1% increase in spending over FY26.

The bottom line includes $60.114 billion in line item spending, $2.7 billion in spending from the state’s income surtax, and a nearly $550 million transfer to the Medical Assistance Trust Fund, equating to a $2.32 billion or 3.8% increase over last year. The proposal comes as general purpose tax revenues have shown disappointing growth.

Committee members also hit the governor on other topics.

State Sen. Ryan Fattman (R-Worcester & Hampden) asked Healey about the vast outmigration issue facing Massachusetts, along with the growing number of businesses that are shutting down or moving to more economically friendly states.

“This is something on my mind every day. Look, I think Massachusetts is an incredible state. I think we’ve got assets that other states would kill for,” said Healey. “Outmigration actually is down since our administration. Now, it doesn’t mean that it isn’t something that we’re keeping an eye on and are very, very focused on. Particularly, you should look at a five-year or six-year trend.”

The latest U.S. Census Bureau data shows Massachusetts continues to see significant outmigration numbers, with the state losing roughly 182,000 residents while gaining 152,000 in the 12-month period ending on July 1, 2025, according to its “Vintage” population estimates. That works out to a net domestic outmigration of over 30,000 residents. The data also shows Massachusetts primarily relies on international immigration for bringing residents into the state.

Massachusetts peaked in net domestic outmigration in 2021 and 2022 with 57,292. Net outmigration remains high, but continued to drop since that timeframe, with the state seeing a net outmigration of 39,149 residents in 2022 and 2023, and then 27,480 in 2023 and 2024 – Healey’s first year in office. That number is back up in 2024 and 2025 for the first time since the peak seen in 2021 and 2022.

“We also are very mindful of, and I am, of what’s happening with companies,” Healey said in response Fattman’s question about businesses fleeing Massachusetts.

“What is happening with businesses? Are they able to come here? Are they able to expand here, or do they have trouble recruiting talent because they can’t find people who can afford housing here? Are electricity costs are too high? Is it easier for them to go somewhere else and manufacture. I get all that,” she said, advocating for increasing the amount of affordable housing in the state, investing in the state’s education system, and continuing to work to lower costs, among other things.

Asked by Fattman about possibly considering a rollback of the states NetZero by 2050 mandate to a goal, like it was under former Gov. Deval Patrick, Healey doubled down on what she says is the need for renewable energy sources while also saying that she is for an “all of the above” approach when it comes to utilizing traditional sources like natural gas and nuclear power.

“It should be about both how to bring as much energy from as many sources as possible online as quickly as possible. I do think the move towards renewables is something that we absolutely need to continue on,” Healey said. “Now’s the time where we should be looking to do as much as we can with respect to all parts of energy, and I continue to be a strong proponent of clean energy while recognizing the balance that we need.”

Fattman then pressed Healey on soaring energy costs in Massachusetts, referencing the findings of an independent study that found state policies and climate mandates are the driver behind increasing utility bills.

“But you have to acknowledge, I think we all have to, that a lot of the costs on utility bills are not happenstance. They come from the legislative mandates since 2021. And those are directly impacted on the Netzero [by 2050 mandate], pressing Healey again on considering a rollback of the mandate. Healey against expressed her support for increasing renewable energy usage in Massachusetts.

The House and Senate will redraft Healey’s spending blueprint and debate their own versions, typically in April and May.

Fiscal year 2027 begins July 1.