Utilizing its superior quickness and athleticism on the defensive end has been the hallmark of the Dedham High girls basketball team’s success this winter, and it’s what turned Tuesday night’s game with Brookline from a tight contest to a rout in the second half.
The Marauders held the Warriors to 13 points after the break, opening the fourth quarter with an 8-0 run to pull away for a 51-34 win and improve to 8-5 overall and 6-5 in the Bay State Conference.
"We defended the ball better in the second half," said Dedham coach Don Savi. "We didn’t give so many drives and easy looks at the basket and did a much better job on the big girl (Raven Braithwaite) in the second half."
Defense has been the key this winter for Dedham, which had lost four of it last five coming in. In their eight wins, the Marauders have not allowed an opponent to score more than 41 points, and have surrendered an average of just over 30 per game.
Senior Emily Hill’s 14 points led three Marauders in double figures in scoring, with Libby Maslasky adding 13 and Brianna Dozier 10. Hill and Masalsky also combined for nine steals.
"We kept up the pressure, took our shots and passed the ball better," said Hill. "We needed to focus. I don’t think we were that focused in the first half, but we got more focused as the game went on."
Dedham led just 24-21 at halftime after a turnover-plagued opening 16 minutes, but stretched out the advantage to 41-30 by the end of the third, getting eight points from Masalsky in the quarter. The Marauders slammed the door shut in the first three minutes of the fourth with the first eight points.
Masalsky finished on the break to start the spurt, then stole an inbounds pass and fed Dozier for a jumper. Hill capped it with consecutive buckets – a floater in the lane followed by a steal and breakaway lay-up.
"Our defense turned into some transition for us and we hit some shots finally in the second half," said Savi. "It was good to spread it out there."
The Marauders subbed liberally the rest of the way, getting all 10 available players in the game, including freshman Hannah Ryan, a recent call up from the J.V. team to help fill the void left by a wrist injury to Jenn Wadman.
Utilizing its superior quickness and athleticism on the defensive end has been the hallmark of the Dedham High girls basketball team’s success this winter, and it’s what turned Tuesday night’s game with Brookline from a tight contest to a rout in the second half.
The Marauders held the Warriors to 13 points after the break, opening the fourth quarter with an 8-0 run to pull away for a 51-34 win and improve to 8-5 overall and 6-5 in the Bay State Conference.
"We defended the ball better in the second half," said Dedham coach Don Savi. "We didn’t give so many drives and easy looks at the basket and did a much better job on the big girl (Raven Braithwaite) in the second half."
Defense has been the key this winter for Dedham, which had lost four of it last five coming in. In their eight wins, the Marauders have not allowed an opponent to score more than 41 points, and have surrendered an average of just over 30 per game.
Senior Emily Hill’s 14 points led three Marauders in double figures in scoring, with Libby Maslasky adding 13 and Brianna Dozier 10. Hill and Masalsky also combined for nine steals.
"We kept up the pressure, took our shots and passed the ball better," said Hill. "We needed to focus. I don’t think we were that focused in the first half, but we got more focused as the game went on."
Dedham led just 24-21 at halftime after a turnover-plagued opening 16 minutes, but stretched out the advantage to 41-30 by the end of the third, getting eight points from Masalsky in the quarter. The Marauders slammed the door shut in the first three minutes of the fourth with the first eight points.
Masalsky finished on the break to start the spurt, then stole an inbounds pass and fed Dozier for a jumper. Hill capped it with consecutive buckets – a floater in the lane followed by a steal and breakaway lay-up.
"Our defense turned into some transition for us and we hit some shots finally in the second half," said Savi. "It was good to spread it out there."
The Marauders subbed liberally the rest of the way, getting all 10 available players in the game, including freshman Hannah Ryan, a recent call up from the J.V. team to help fill the void left by a wrist injury to Jenn Wadman.
Renee Gassler led Dedham on the boards with eight rebounds. Meghan McFarland provided a boost off the bench in the first half, hitting back-to-back shots from the left corner.
Braithwaite, who had several inches over the tallest Marauders at 6-foot-3, had 11 points and 12 rebounds to lead the Warriors.
Dedham gave a Newton North team that was coming off consecutive wins against powerful Braintree and Lincoln-Sudbury squads all it could handle Friday night before fading late in a 51-37 loss.
The Marauders pulled within 40-35 with four minutes remaining, but could not keep their rally going down the stretch. Libby Masalsky had 11 points to paced Dedham while Ellen Masalsky added eight.
While their berth in the Division 3 South tournament has already been secured earlier this season via the Sullivan Rule, the Marauders appear to have a good shot at surpassing last year’s 10-10 regular season mark with seven games remaining. Dedham travels to rival Norwood tomorrow, which it edged 44-41 at home in the first meeting.
"I think we all want to go above. 500, and every year we have improved our season and we just want to add to it," said Hill.
