Blue Devils Get Hot to Topple Defending Suffolk Champions
The Huntington girls’ basketball team staggered through more than three quarters of play before its shooters finally got hot as the Blue Devils overcame an 11-point deficit to topple defending Suffolk Class A champion Harborfields, 48-42 before a home crowd of 400 at Louis D. Giani Gymnasium.
In a game marked by numerous turnovers and misplays, both teams went long stretches without being able to score, but it was Huntington that seemed clearly off-balance throughout most of the evening. The Blue Devils just couldn’t find any rhythm despite occasional flashes of offense and some brilliant defensive plays.
Huntington managed to take a 15-10 lead late in the second quarter, before the Tornadoes responded with six unanswered points to carry a one-point advantage into the locker room at halftime.
The third quarter saw Harborfields go on a 20-12 run to open a large lead, thanks to a stalled Huntington offense and continued Blue Devil turnovers. The Tornadoes seemed headed for a huge win when they took an 11-point lead early in the fourth quarter. Then Huntington’s fortunes took a dramatic U-turn.
“The whole game changed when we went to a triangle-and-two on defense,” Blue Devil coach Brad Reminick said. “It’s a gimmicky defense and I don’t like to run them but the tide shifted.”
Blue Devil guards Casey Scully and Maria Marascia played man-to-man and Huntington’s three other players on the court sat in a zone. “We just kept saying to dig a little bit deeper and sure enough, we had three or four shots that just rimmed out to tie the game but eventually we got one to fall," Reminick said. "The girls wanted this one.”
All-State guard Kerry Hicks knotted the score at 40 when she connected on a long three-pointer with 2:48 remaining. On the ensuing possession, Harborfields put up an errant shot that Huntington forward Julie Forster pulled down as the teams slugged it out toe-to-toe, before the Tornados again went ahead, 42-40. But, just as quickly, Hicks pumped in another three-pointer with 1:34 left to send the home crowd into a frenzy as the Blue Devils took a 43-42 lead.
“Harborfields took everything we wanted last year,” Reminick said, referring to Huntington’s one-point loss to their cross-town rival in the Suffolk finals. “We had this game circled on the calendar for quite some time.”
The final sequence saw the Blue Devil defense at its best, preventing Harborfields from scoring as Huntington closed the game on an 8-0 run, thanks to sinking five of six shots from the foul line.
After the game, Reminick beamed when talking about his players. “To be down 11 in the fourth quarter to one of the top ranked teams in the state and coming back to win says a lot about them as individuals,” he said. “Kerry Hicks was in the zone. Offensively, she played great and called a great game as the floor general. Maria and Casey in the fourth quarter were the difference. They held two All-County players to three or four shots and four points. They changed the game. Julie had about 21 rebounds and was the difference on the glass. She played an outstanding game. Matte (Scully) played a very strong game as well.”
The win made Huntington’s tough early season non-league schedule seem worth it. “We played the best in Suffolk in our non-league games to get ready for this,” Reminick said. “A lot of people were surprised when we lost our first couple of games, but we needed to create a new identity. Last year was over. We are just starting to find who we are as a team.”
But, Harborfields is a formidable foe and Huntington will face them later in the regular season and almost definitely a third time in the playoffs. Reminick will be sure to have his team ready for the Tornadoes. “They are a great team and will be very tough to beat again,” he said. “We were lucky enough to pull this one out. It should be a fun ride.” In the meantime, the Blue Devils will savor this victory.
Blue Devil Notes: Hicks scored a game high 23 points, including a trio of three-point baskets . . . Marascia forced numerous turnovers with her gritty play, scored eight points, including a pair of three-pointers and came down with several key rebounds . . . Casey Scully was suffocating on defense and scored six points . . . Forster turned in her best performance of the season, with nine points and a dominating inside presence down the stretch . . . The Blue Devils outscored Harborfields in the fourth quarter, 21-6 . . . Kailene Abt (Notre Dame) and Morgan Hughes (Univ. of New Hampshire), two key players on last year’s Blue Devil team who are home on a break from college, were in the stands for the game . . . Matte Scully added two points and hauled in several big rebounds . . . Harborfields entered the game ranked 10th in the latest poll conducted by the New York State Sportswriters’ Association.
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