South Glens Falls Hangs On For W Over Broadalbin-Perth

December 4, 2019

South Glens Falls 38, Broadalbin-Perth 33

It was a rare Foothills Wednesday for these two teams, as their season opener was pushed back from Monday due to weather. South Glens Falls led for nearly all of the 2nd half, but it took a couple timely buckets and a strong defensive effort in the closing moments to be able to hold off host Broadalbin-Perth in their season opener.

The start was slow on both ends, but especially so for SGF, who fell behind 7-1 early after being held without a field goal for the first 4 minutes. B-P was able to dominate the glass early, thanks in large part to Makenzie Smith (Broadalbin-Perth 2022), who had a pair of buckets in the first few minutes. SGF finally got on the board with a Hannah Breen (South Glens Falls 2021) basket, then Sydney Hart (SGF 2023) delivered with a three to cut their deficit to 8-6 after one quarter. A 9-0 run in the 2nd quarter, five coming from Breen, gave them a 15-10 lead, but B-P responded with a 6-0 spurt to briefly regain the lead. A pair of Hart buckets in the final minute of the half sent the Bulldogs into the locker room up 20-16 - a lead that B-P wouldn't get back.

Sydney Hart helped SGF grab the lead in the 1st half, scoring 9 of her 13 points before intermission.

The 2nd half started with a deep right wing trey from Caroline Iannotti (B-P 2021), but SGF went on a run to open it up a bit as B-P's offense went a bit stagnant. A 7-1 spurt capped with a Courtney Robarge bucket gave SGF their largest lead at 31-22 late in the 3rd. After Smith scored to cut B-P's deficit to 7 going into the final stanza, Robarge opened the 4th with another basket, but the Patriots would make their final push from there. A 9-0 run, 5 points coming from Iannotti, brought B-P all the way back as another Caroline trey tied the game at 33 with 3:21 left. The SGF drought finally ended on the ensuing possession with a Zoe Lanfear layup, then a big Breen trey off an extra pass from Hart gave them a 38-33 edge with 2:01 left. B-P had chances to cut into the deficit, but a few possessions came up empty and they were unable to foul enough to put SGF on the free throw line in the waning moments.

Hannah Breen led all scorers with 14 points, including three of SGF's four threes on the night. Sydney Hart added 13 in the win. For Broadalbin-Perth, Caroline Iannotti paced them with 10 points with 8 coming in the 2nd half, and Makenzie Smith added 8.

Caroline Iannotti started & ended the B-P 2nd half scoring with threes, and she contributed 8 of her team high 10 points after halftime.

#ThoughtsFromTheBaseline

- I choose my words on Twitter, but I'm also not one to mince words. Early season basketball at its finest Wednesday. Gritty, not the most aesthetically pleasing, not the smoothest flow to a game that I've ever seen. In games like this - and they're always bound to happen - it's all about digging in, battling, playing hard, and getting enough shots to fall to pull one out. This one will most definitely be a bit more fluid later in the year, but it was the season opener for both teams - just have to grind one out sometimes. With that being said...

- Credit to SGF for doing just that - finding a way to manufacture a win on the road when they weren't at their best. B-P did a good job defensively on SGF ball screens, keeping a tough PG in Syd Hart from getting paint touches most of the night, and they made SGF work deep into the shot clock consistently. That being said, Syd found other ways to produce, Hannah Breen hit shots when she was given space, and they did a better job on the glass as the night went on. Sometimes, you'll take wins however you can get them. The Foothills is a bit up in the air behind Queensbury & Amsterdam, with SGF, B-P, and Johnstown all battling in that pile. I'll never read deeply into early season results, but a solid road W to start the season for SGF nonetheless.

Hannah Breen played a large role in SGF's victory Wednesday, providing a needed scoring punch & ability to stretch the defense with her game high 14 points & 3 threes.

- B-P certainly had their chances. On a night where it certainly wasn't fluid for them either, they had it all square with 3 minutes left at their place. They had difficulty getting Makenzie Smith, one of Section 2's better post players, post touches at times. SGF's pressure bothered them throughout the night, and they got smacked with a couple 5 second & 10 second violation calls in some important moments late. Again, chalk some of that up to season opener problems. With a post/perimeter duo like Smith/Caroline Iannotti, this is probably the best Broadalbin-Perth team in the six years I've been doing this (I know, it hasn't been that long, but still). Tough one for them tonight as they have to go back-to-back with a game at Amsterdam, but they should be in the thick of it in the Foothills as the season wears on.