High School Girls Basketball

By DARREN SANDS

TROY, N.Y. -- Ladies and gentlemen. As if we never left, welcome back to Hudson Valley Community College.

Now gearing up for North Babylon's much anticipated match up with Corcoran of Section III. An interesting tidbit from Adam came in our conversations leading up to today. North Babylon coach Mike Petre went all the way upstate after beating Hicksville last week to see Corcoran play in the quarterfinals against Shenendehowa. Petre said that the Lady Bulldogs would beat Corcoran seven out of ten times.

That's a pretty good clip. Albeit a biased one.

With that said, we don't know if his prediction will hold true today. This is one game. But North Babylon stars Bria Hartley and Eugeneia McPherson look focused and ready to go.

And so are we. The tip is just minutes away.

Update 8:03 -- McPherson just made two straight three-pointers to help North Babylon open up an 8-0 lead.

Update 8:07 -- A Bria Hartley layup made the score 14-2. North Babylon is so much more athletic than Corcoran right now that it's a bit stifling. Corcoran can barely get the ball past midcourt.

North Babylon 19, Corcoran 6: North Babylon's Kelly Whitaker hit a three-pointer and the Lady Bulldogs lead by 15. My sidekick Adam believes, and this may very well be true, that McPherson has had a role in every basket except Hartley's lay up. She has 12 points and two assists.

Update 8:27 p.m. -- Corcoran has crawled back to within four with a 9-0 run. Score is 19-15 in favor of North Babylon.

Update 8:40 -- North Babylon leads, 26-20, with more of the same from Corcoran. They are a bigger team, and are essentially beating North Babylon up. I've counted Hartley and McPherson picking themselves up from the floor a total of six times. Every time they get in the lane, watch out. Corcoran has been to the line a bunch in the second quarter. We'll have official numbers for you at halftime.

North Babylon 28, Corcoran 25 HALF -- Corcoran sneaked their way back into this contest with strong rebounding and brusing, physical defense. The players guarding Hartley and McPherson may not be quicker than the North Babylon duo, but they know it, and they are trying to make up for it by playing somewhat recklessly on dribble drives to the basket, and on a punishing, collaspsing defense. McPherson leads the Lady Bulldogs with 16 points.

Update 9:05 -- There is 4:22 left in the third quarter, North Babylon leads, 36-27. North Babylon's Maliqua Fisher and Katrina Plummer each have four fouls.

A Bria Hartley three-pointer has made the score 41-29 with 3:02 remaining.

North Babylon 43, Corcoran 36 3rd: A three-pointer from the left side by Ayana Bradley of Corcoran cut North Babylon's lead to seven. Eight minutes to go. Rush Henrietta's players are here, scattered throughout. They beat Kingston, 58-51. Shenise Johnson, who was today named this year's Miss Basketball New York -- over Sammy Prahalis -- had 29 points, 16 rebounds, and seven steals.

Update 9:20 -- An NBA three-pointer by Laura Whitaker has stretched North Babylon's lead to 50-40. There is 5:40 remaining in the game.

Update 9:25 -- North Babylon has let its ballhandlers milk the game clock. With two free-throws by Hartley, North Babylon stretched its lead, 54-42.

Update 11:02 -- Sorry. Wireless went out in the entire building. North Babylon wins, 61-46.

Hey, folks.

Our wireless connection went out at Hudson Valley Community College. Our next best option was a Starbucks two miles down the road, according to a league official. Our sincere apologies.

North Babylon ended the game on a 16-6 run to pull away with a 61-46 victory. They'll play two-time defending champion Rush-Henrietta, and arguably the best player in the state in Shenise Johnson. Johnson was nowhere to be found, but several players stuck around to watch North Babylon. Look out for Adam Ronis' game story soon.