By:Steve Siniski
After relying heavily on the offensive abilities of floor leader Thalia Jackson, the sixth-seeded Baldwin Bruins (13-7 overall) gave their point guard plenty of support in a 58-34 victory over No. 3-seed Syosset (14-4) in the first round of the Conference I-A playoff on Feb. 23.
It was the third-straight win for the Bruins over Syosset, with the last a 57-56 overtime win at home on Feb. 15. I told the girls [before the playoff win] that it's a different game now, Baldwin coach Heather Nicholson said. Those regular season wins mean nothing now. Our mindset coming in was different. The girls truly worked hard in the days leading up to the game with Syosset.
Sophomore Nicole Emery provided instant offense in the first quarter, scoring the Bruins first six points and finishing with 17 overall. Nicole has stepped into a role I didn't expect, Nicholson said of her fast-rising forward.
The Bruins led after one quarter, 11-10, but outscored Syosset 47-24 over the final three quarters. The gates really opened in the third quarter thanks to our shooting, Nicholson said of Baldwin's offensive explosion. We didn't use our pressure defense too much, because the few times we did, Syosset beat us down the floor. So we went with our halfcourt man defense instead.
And for that to work, it took another outstanding defensive effort from Jackson on Syosset's Erin Connolly. With Emery and Cherice Brown (10 points) playing big roles on offense, Jackson was able to concentrate on slowing down Syosset's No. 1 scorer and long-distance threat. Connolly, who averaged 19 points per game, was held to just 11 points (after managing just 12 and 13 in the teams' two previous regular season meetings). But the final box score doesn't tell the true story. Connolly scored five of her points in the final two minutes, as Jackson got a well-deserved rest with the game in hand.
Baldwin advances to the second round to take on an all-too-familiar fo-Massapequa-on Feb. 27. The Herald went to press prior to the game.
The Bruins and Chiefs split their two regular-season meetings with Massapequa winning by nine and Baldwin running away with a 12-point victory during the stretch run. Baldwin's also hoping to get a bitter taste out of its mouth
