Raiders avenge earlier hoops loss to Pennington in final
By: Justin Feil
HAMILTON After winning the Eastern States Christmas Invitational Tournament at McCorristin High on Sunday, the Hun School girls’ basketball can do something that hasn’t happened in the three previous years it entered the tournament.
The Raiders can enjoy their upcoming break in the schedule.
"It’s good to have a couple days off now," Hun coach Bill Holup said following his team’s 38-18 win over Pennington in the championship. "It’s much better to win, then have some time off, than losing and then having to sit around and think about it for another week until you play."
Beating Pennington on the heels of topping three-time defending champion and last year’s Group II state champion Northern Burlington, 41-38, on Saturday made the time off that much more deserved.
"It’s a big momentum builder and a big confidence booster," said Holup, whose team improved to 7-3 by avenging an earlier two-point loss to the Red Raiders. "We lost back-to-back games to good teams, Blair and Rutgers (Prep), and to be one of the better teams, we have to beat the better teams. By knocking off Northern Burlington (Saturday) and Pennington, I think we showed we can be one of them."
Hun doesn’t play again until Jan. 7 when it has a chance to avenge another of its losses when Blair visits. The Raiders took different routes to its tournament wins this weekend.
Northern Burlington built a nine-point halftime lead on the Raiders, but Hun’s defense tightened in the second half to key the victory. Hun allowed just 11 points and took the lead on ESCIT Most Valuable Player Shantee Darrian’s three-pointer with just under two minutes left in the game and hung on for the win. It was a win that lifted Hun’s spirits for the championship.
"We tried to bring that same intensity we had in the second half yesterday," Holup said. "We limited (NB) to 11 points in the second half and we wanted to keep that pressure and defense going. We knew (Pennington) didn’t have its point guard so we wanted to see if we could force a few turnovers without getting into foul trouble."
Hun did just that as it forced Pennington into as many turnovers, 18, as the Red Raiders had points, 18. Darrian again led the Raiders in scoring with 13 points, but it was a balanced attack that made it difficult for Pennington to focus on any one player.
"They played zone against us the first game too," Holup said. "We did not react well. We didn’t shoot well and we got frustrated. We’ve been working on trying to be more patient and trying to get better shots. Very few teams can match up with us man-to-man. We do have a number of girls who can score so that makes it tougher."
Hun found success against the Pennington zone by going to everyone on the court. It moved the ball inside to Mary Stinson and Natalie Maeser and around the perimeter with Darrian, Jill Fonseca and Ica Morales. Stinson, Morales and Fonseca were all named to the All-Tournament team.
"Since we graduated so many people, me and Ica and Jill have to step up," said Stinson, who scored the go-ahead basket in the first quarter as Hun ended the half on a 14-1 run. "Everyone had to do well for us to win. It’s really good to win here. I think we’ll keep going strong from here. Now we know what we’re capable of."
The Raiders are feeling better about themselves with each game. Besides the progress they showed against Pennington’s zone defense, their win over Northern Burlington showed their progress as the Greyhounds went to a stalling game late in the contest, but Hun was able to overcome the tactics for the comeback win.
"When Pennington got ahead they went to a stall," Stinson said of the Dec. 17 meeting of the teams. "We didn’t react well to it. When Northern Burlington did it, we had seen it before. We practiced if they’re not going to shoot playing better defense. That was a great win. They’ve won the last three years in a row, so it was nice to beat them. It’s our best win. And it was important to go up to 6-3 and not go to 5-4."
The difference is that the Raiders are more comfortable with their roles on the floor. Stinson, who started as a freshman last year, returns as a more polished presence inside.
"She wants the ball in the post more," Holup noted. "She’s much more aggressive about it than last year. She’s becoming more vocal out there.
"She’s physically stronger and also mentally. She’s better prepared for games, which comes with experience. She gives us a legitimate scorer in the post, which we haven’t had for a while."
It’s one reason that the Raiders have an ESCIT championship after three years of coming close. Last year, they were handled by Northern Burlington in the final.
"We’re a lot younger this year," Stinson said. "We lost a lot of people, but we’re more of a team this year. We fit together well.
"I’m more confident," she said of her own difference. "When the team is older, it’s hard to be a newcomer."
A young team off to a .700 start bodes well as the Raiders stand to improve significantly throughout the season as they play more and gain more experience together. Though there are still points to work on boxing out for rebounds is big on Holup’s list the season has already taken off quickly.
"We really have been improving each game," Stinson said. "We had a little slump with Rutgers and Pennington. We weren’t in sync. Shantee was new. Now we’re playing more as a team."
It paid off in a solid team effort that first brought them back for victory against the three-time ESCIT champions then won the championship hardware while avenging an earlier loss to Pennington. It’s certain to make the break a lot more enjoyable.