Girls: T.M.L.A. Tops Cardinal O'Hara
BRONX, NY- Sunday at The Mecca Challenge had a pair of games that pitted NYCHoops.net Girls Top Ten teams against each other, with the first one being The Mary Louis Academy taking on Cardinal O'Hara.
Having lost yesterday to Christ the King, the Lady Hawks were looking to rally and take at least 1 win from the weekend back to Buffalo, while TMLA were also playing their second game in two days, having defeated St. Francis Prep in a BQGCHSAA league matchup on Saturday.
With both teams feeling the effects of fatigue it proved to be a slow start for both. The Hilltoppers led most of the way until the shooting of Cori Dickson '17 brought O'Hara back midway through the 4th quarter to give the Lady Hawks a lead.
They couldn't hold on though as Danielle Patterson '17 asserted herself in the closing minutes to put TMLA on top for good, closing the game out strong and helping give her Hilltoppers a 53-47 victory.
Coming into Sunday's date with Cardinal O'Hara, TMLA head coach JoAnn Arbitello-Pinnock was liking her teams play having defeated Ossining, Christ the King, and Baldwin all in the past 2 weeks, but she had reservations as well about how much her team has had to give in that stretch, and how it might affect them.
"We have had some pretty tough games lately and not only that but the girls have been practicing hard as well," Arbitello-Pinnock said.
Combine that with an 11:30am game on Sunday and the recipe was there for a game that could pose Mary Louis problems as they went up against an O'Hara team that was looking to prove themselves against an elite level of competition.
Dickson came out on fire as she had 8 first quarter points, connecting on a pair of three balls from the wings to put Cardinal O'Hara after one 16-13.
The 2nd saw a more aggressive TMLA team that attacking the basket more with Jordan Nixon '18 getting to the rim and pushing the tempo more than they were as a team early on. There were a good amount of missed layups by both teams though as the half wound down as neither team was able to really get out and take command.
O'Hara fell behind late in the quarter, and when Patterson was able to hit a short jumper in the closing seconds of the half, it allowed the Hilltoppers to take a 26-23 lead going into the break.
Even with the team overall struggling, Patterson was a bright spot late in the half to put The Mary Louis Academy back on top, and Arbitello-Pinnock explained just how her ability to fight and finish down low against contact has really rounded her out as a player.
"I think that's something that Dani has embraced over the course of the year and she can take contact inside and definitely maneuver in there," Arbitello-Pinnock explained.
It looked as if even with TMLA going deep into the bench in the 3rd quarter that they were on the verge of pulling away a bit as O'Hara struggled to finish around the rim, and with Patterson able to really get going, the Hilltoppers took their biggest lead of the game when they went up by 9.
Nickelle O'Neil '18 was able to drain a three ball from the left side to chip back into the Mary Louis lead, and it seemed as if Cardinal O'Hara were going away from getting the ball into the paint, and going towards more of what they were doing well, shooting the perimeter.
The TMLA press did cause them a good amount of problems, but once they began to break the trap more and more in the 4th quarter, the tide began to turn and when Shilah Parker '17 was able to connect from long range with 5:45 to play in the game, the Lady Hawks had come all the way back to take a 43-42 lead.
It was time for the seniors of TMLA to step up, and that's where Patterson spoke to the team stressing to everyone to play their game and not let O'Hara dictate how the final 5+ minutes were going to be played.
"We just said to hold out composure," Patterson said. "We didn't want them to dictate the rest of the game. We ended up getting good shots and kept our heads in the game."
That they did as Patterson would take charge as she would post up and even against double, and triple teams, would fight through and either finish or get fouled on 3 straight TMLA possessions. Mary Louis quickly retook the lead, and while Cardinal O'Hara did have looks from behind the arc to cut into the lead, and at one point tie it, they went cold missing 5 straight threes in the final 1:30.
In the final minute, it proved to be all about the composure that Patterson spoke of as the Hilltoppers did a good job of maintaining control, and hitting FT's to ultimately put away a solid Lady Hawks team, 53-47.
It may not have been pretty, but with Patterson scoring 17 points, and Nixon adding 16 points, TMLA were able to come away with another victory, their 6th in a row after a rough early stretch, and while they may look as if they are peaking, Arbitello-Pinnock says she still is looking for more going forward for this group.
"I am always looking for something, I'm not too sure what, but I think we still have a little bit more," Arbitello-Pinnock said with a smile.
While in a loss, Dickson came out looking great for Cardinal O'Hara as she the guard had a game high 20 points, with young guard Angel Parker '19 playing solid from start to finish in adding 9 points as well.
There is only one day for TMLA to rest before they get back on the court to take on Bishop Loughlin on Tuesday, and even though one day doesn't seem like it's much, Patterson is happy to be able to take the 24 hours of tomorrow to relax before getting ready for the stretch run.
"We have a game on Tuesday against Loughlin so tomorrow will be a day to just rest out bodies and focus on what will be a big finish to the season."
