Second-half surge sends ‘Bolts to quarterfinals

Matt Metcalf, Sports Editor
Posted 2/25/15

The Cranston East girls’ basketball team spent the last two seasons in the basement of Division I, compiling just one league win.

So with a starting lineup comprised of one freshman, two …

This item is available in full to subscribers.

Please log in to continue

E-mail
Password
Log in

Second-half surge sends ‘Bolts to quarterfinals

Posted

The Cranston East girls’ basketball team spent the last two seasons in the basement of Division I, compiling just one league win.

So with a starting lineup comprised of one freshman, two sophomores, one junior and one senior, there was very little playoff experience entering Saturday night’s game. The last time East was in the playoffs was in 2011-12 – when this year’s seniors were freshmen.

The lack of experience in the postseason certainly showed out of the gates for the third-seeded ‘Bolts on Saturday. But after getting down early, East battled back, out-scoring sixth-seeded Cumberland 37-19 in the second half, en route to defeating the Clippers, 54-42.

‘Bolts’ head coach Lloyd Bochner definitely thought that nerves got to his team in the first half, as the Clippers built a lead as big as 15 points.

“We were definitely nervous,” Bochner said. “We haven’t had a playoff game here in three or four years, so there were definitely some nerves. These kids haven’t played playoff basketball before. We were lucky to be down by six at the half.”

East finally settled down late in the first half and started to take care of the ball. As a result, the ‘Bolts were able to chip away at their double-digit deficit, ending the first half on a 9-2 run.

Sophomore McKenzie Richards provided a big lift in the final minutes – knocking down two key 3-pointers.

Richards hit her first with 2:37 remaining in the first half to make it a 23-13 game. She then splashed a 3 in the final seconds after an inbounds pass from Molly Phillips, cutting the deficit to 23-17 at the half.

East had to feel fortunate to be down by just six heading into the break, as it turned the ball over 17 times in the first 16 minutes.

In the second half, the ‘Bolts continued to ride their momentum.

Maia Caito, Sarah Coutu and Kyla Depina were dominant in the second half. Caito scored 11 points after the break, while Coutu netted all of her 10 points and Depina added eight.

East really utilized its size advantage with Caito in the paint, forcing passes to her in the post.

A Caito layup cut Cumberland’s lead to 31-29, before she converted a transition layup with seven minutes remaining to give East its first lead of the game, 33-32.

However, Cumberland would battle back.

Point guard Julianne Ross hit a circus shot with the shot clock about to expire with five minutes to play, allowing the Clippers to regain the lead, 38-37.

Richards again dialed-in from long distance just over a minute later, though. This time, Richards was fouled, but twisted her ankle as she landed. Due to injury, senior Alexa St. Angelo came in off the bench and calmly knocked down the free throw to give the ‘Bolts a 41-40 lead.

Coutu hit her head on the court after a drive to the basket earlier in the half and St. Angelo came in and sank one of those two free throws, as well.

“We fought through some injuries – Sarah hit her head and McKenzie busted up her ankle a little bit,” Bochner said. “But I had Alexa St. Angelo come in, who barely plays, and knock down two of three free throws. When you talk about a team, you never know when your number is going to get called.”

East extended its lead out to 45-42, before Depina got fouled and knocked down a pair of free throws to make it a 47-42 game.

Caito came up with a big block on the other end on Cumberland’s next possession to put the game away.

Depina and Coutu sank free throws in the final minute to secure the win.

It was really an all-around team effort from the ‘Bolts, who had to fight through injuries and a shaky start. But when East needed its go-to players to step up, they certainly did.

“Sarah’s our engine, and when she’s revved-up, it’s hard to stop her,” Bochner said. “She does a nice job distributing the ball and she can score. We just have to keep her out of foul trouble. With Maia, it forces teams to double-team her on offense. It’s a huge advantage – one that we haven’t had at East in a long time.”

Caito finished with a game-high 13 points, while Coutu and Depina scored 10 apiece.

The win earned the ‘Bolts a date with Moses Brown in the quarterfinals. The game was set for 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday night, but results were unavailable at press time.

The Quakers were a 2-seed and had a record of 15-3 this season.

Bochner knew that his team would be in for a challenge against the Quakers.

“They’re very athletic,” Bochner said. “They’re a 2-seed and went 15-3 for a reason. But we’re 15-4 now, so it should be a great game. We play better on the road, so I don’t think that we’ll be nervous on Tuesday.”

Comments

No comments on this item Please log in to comment by clicking here