January 22, 2010
Bees take over division lead
Senior Samantha Maggio had a double-double with 12 points and 12 rebounds.
Click Here for photos from Bayonne at Marist.
By Jason Bernstein
Editorial Director
BAYONNE – Few rivalries in Hudson County are more intense than the one between Bayonne and Marist in girls basketball. With first place in the division and a possible top seed in the upcoming Hudson County Tournament on the line the stakes were even higher for this mid-January showdown.
Round one between these Peninsula City rivals went to the Bees left Marist with a 60-51 victory last night.
“I feel like we live to play this game every year,” Bayonne guard Connie Hayes said. “This is what we play for. I love playing Marist. I love the crowd. I love coming here to play.”
It was easy to see why Hayes would enjoy playing in the Royal Knights’ home gym. The senior came out firing, draining four 3-pointers en route to a 17-point performance.
“She hit some big shots,” Bayonne coach James Turner said. “She worked so hard to get her shot off that she cramped up. They were trying to trap the guards, put everyone inside and make her shoot threes. Hayes hit those threes and she had an excellent game. She won the game for us in the end.”
With the Bees (11-2) holding a one-point lead late in the first, Hayes went off for eight straight points. She punished the Royal Knights (10-4) zone defense by draining a pair of 3-pointers from the corner, her favorite spot on the court.
“When they were playing the zone, my eyes lit up,” Hayes said. “I think in the second half they played more of a box-and-one on me so I couldn’t get as many shots off. The first half I had a good time.”
“We knew she could shoot,” Marist coach Damel Ling said. “We wanted to limit her open looks. She had two or three open looks in the first half that killed us.”
She would connect on another three-point dagger late in the first half and had 14 points heading into the locker room.
With all eyes on Hayes, Bayonne was able to create offense in the paint in the second half. After a quiet start, sophomore Lisa Rovatsos erupted for 15 points in the second half en route to a game-high 19.
“It opened up the middle for us,” Turner said. “That’s the luxury of having an inside-out combo. Once they shaded Hayes with their quickest defender on her it really opened the middle up for Kerrie (Kosakowski) and Lisa and for Sammy to drive and penetrate and get some easy looks.”
Rovatsos and Tara Flynn (eight points, all in the fourth quarter) scored nine straight points to start the fourth quarter and open the lead to a dozen
Marist closed the gap behind eight fourth-quarter points from Antoinette Blake, but the Bees held off the late charge as Samantha Maggio hit six free throws in the final two minutes to preserve the win.
The senior guard finished with 12 point and 12 rebounds, while being the stabilizing force in an emotional and physical contest that could have easily lost control.
“When the ball’s in her hands I can relax,” Turner said. “She’s a comfort zone.”
That calmness in the face of pressure was imperative for a Bayonne team on the receiving end of huge performances from Blake and Desiree Denmark.
Blake was a dominant presence in the paint with 14 points, 14 rebounds and four blocks. While a visibly hobbled Denmark overcame a few hard shots in the fourth to post a double-double of her own. The senior scored 15 points, had 14 rebounds, five steals and four assists in a gritty performance.
“She came out tonight and proved how much she wanted it,” Ling said “She was all over the court and she was banged up. My thing is if you’re hurt, sit down and she said ‘Coach, I’m not sitting down.’ That right there proved it to me.”
Denmark’s back-to-back baskets early in the third quarter gave the Royal Knights their only lead of the game at 26-25. Ashley Vazquez added 10 points in defeat.
Marist will get a chance to even the score on Feb. 4, at Bayonne High School.
Antoinette Blake (right) had four blocks, including this one on Lisa Rovatsos (left).
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bayonne Bees (11-2) | 8 |
13 |
13 |
19 |
53 |
| Marist Royal Knights (10-4) | 9 |
20 |
24 |
8 |
61 |
| Bayonne | Marist | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Bayonne: Maggio 12 rebounds; Kosakowski 8 rebounds; Rovatsos 6 rebounds; Flynn 5 assists; Hayes 5 rebounds. Marist: Blake 14 rebounds, 4 blocks; Denmark 14 rebounds, 5 steals, 4 assists; Randle 5 rebounds. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||