Norwich Controls Pace After Halftime, Runs to Win Over SV

December 13, 2018

Norwich 57, Susquehanna Valley 33

Thursday night was as good a time as any to take another trip, this time going into the northern reaches of Section IV for a matchup between perennially competitive STAC Class B programs. A Susquehanna Valley squad that won the Class B Federation championship last year - but returning only UMass signee Maeve Donnelly from last year's starting lineup - hit the road to take on Norwich, a group with an upperclassman core that's been around for a while and feeling like they can play deep into March. In a game between two teams that clearly wanted to play at different paces, Norwich was able to win that battle in the 2nd half and run away in the 4th quarter to a victory.

Saige Benedict played a solid game in the blocks for a Norwich squad lacking in size compared to their SV opponents.

The 1st half could only be described as a war of attrition. It was a slow offensive start on both ends, full of turnovers and fouls, as both teams were jacked up for the moment. Norwich showed early that they would come at SV in waves and try to fluster their guards, and although the turnover count was high, the Sabers were able to use the 6'5" Donnelly as a security blanket breaking the press. Between being able to get the ball into the frontcourt and then getting back on defense to eliminate fast break opportunities for Norwich, Susquehanna Valley was able to succeed early in making it a half-court game. Donnelly scored SV's last 6 points of the 1st quarter, and although they shot just 2/8 from the line in the opening stanza, Norwich could do no better than match that exact effort. A free throw from Abby Flynn (Norwich 2020) gave the Purple Tornado a 9-8 lead at the end of a long 1st quarter. The 2nd quarter resembled the 1st most of the way. After Triniti Myers (Norwich 2019) scored to give Norwich a 12-8 lead, SV had its most potent offensive burst of the night, reeling off 7 unanswered points in just over a minute to take a 15-12 lead in the middle of the quarter. Norwich responded by scoring 8 straight themselves, with Myers and fellow 2019 Taylor Hansen trading threes over a 30 second span. Myers tacked on another three late in the half, but despite the brief onslaught and SV shooting just 8/21 from the line in the half, the Sabers found themselves down just 3.

Susquehanna Valley drew first blood in the 3rd quarter with another Maeve Donnelly basket, but they'd be held scoreless for nearly 5 minutes of action after that as Norwich went on a 10-0 run to take a double digit lead for the first time. The energy of Halea Eaton (Norwich 2020) was instrumental in that run, being responsible for 3 points, 2 assists, 2 steals, and a handful of hustle plays in that stretch. Donnelly was able to get it in the post & convert to stop the bleeding, and Susquehanna Valley kept their deficit at 10 entering the 4th after Mara Donnelly (Susquehanna Valley 2021) got loose for a layup against Norwich's press just before the buzzer. That's as close as the visitors would get though, as the run was on in the 4th. The constant pressure, physicality, and pushing of the pace seemed to pay off, as Norwich was able to continue turning SV over and produce at the offensive end. A pair of threes extended their lead to 17, and after Donnelly converted one more time, the hosts ran off 13 straight points - 7 coming from Eaton and capped by a Flynn three - to give them a 57-29 lead with just over two minutes remaining.

Halea Eaton led a balanced Norwich effort with 12 points and had a fantastic 2nd half. Triniti Myers added 10 in the victory, 8 coming in the 2nd quarter as Norwich was looking for offensive production, and Sydney Coggins also chipped in with 10. For Susquehanna Valley, Maeve Donnelly led the way with 13 points along with being a rim protector in the middle of their 2-3 and being an important piece of breaking the press early.

UMass signee Maeve Donnelly was able to convert when they were able to get it to her in the blocks - she finished with a game high 13.

#JeffsNotes

- Clearly a battle of contrasting styles, with both teams trying to win the battle of pace. Susquehanna Valley coach Chad Freije had a good game plan against Norwich's press, and I thought they executed it well in the 1st half. They actively used Maeve Donnelly as a bit of a 6'5" security blanket against the press, who slowed it down and dictated the speed of the defense rather than the other way around. They also looked to attack with the pass up the sideline instead of reversing to the inbounder, a pass that Norwich tends to eat up. Susquehanna Valley's turnover count was probably high in the 1st half, but they were dead ball turnovers - travel, double dribble, throw it out of bounds - not the live ball turnovers that usually turn into Norwich layups or free throws. With that and how often SV was able to get to the free throw line, I thought they won the battle of pace early. But you could hear Norwich coach Josh Bennett yelling it late in the 2nd quarter: 'They're more tired than we are'. That rang true coming out of the locker room, as the hosts were able to impose their will and slowly wear SV down into a team that just looked like they didn't have much left in the tank as the 4th quarter began. Each team had something that you just can't simulate in practice to prep for them. SV has its next-level size & length, with Maeve Donnelly controlling the middle of their zone and younger sister, 6'2" Mara, alongside her. Norwich has its frenetic pace, toughness, and physicality with its pressure. It took a while for NHS to get anything going offensively, but once their pace won out, the rest was history.

Halea Eaton played a major role in helping Norwich break through in the 2nd half.

- If you follow the Empire State Takeover Twitter (@NYSTakeover), you already saw this, but here it goes again. If you look in the scorebook, it'll say that Halea Eaton scored 3 points in the 3rd quarter. If you were at the game paying attention, you'd probably see that the difference the Norwich 2020 PG made was immense - far beyond what you see in the book. It was 25-22 with 4:07 left when she went to the free throw line. After splitting a pair, she ended up flying out of bounds to dive for a loose ball on the ensuing inbound pass. After that, she tied someone up in the backcourt. Then she tipped a pass out of bounds at the top of the zone. Then she caused another tie-up, this one against Donnelly under the basket. Then she got another tip. After that defensive sequence, they get the ball and she hits a short range floater. We're not done yet. Halea followed it up by stealing a pass in the backcourt, taking a couple dribbles and dumping one off to Nicole Jeffrey for a layup. Timeout, SV, now down 30-22... and this all happened in 55 seconds of play. Norwich's victory was a team effort for sure, but I personally thought Halea changed the game over those 55 seconds. This is all part of the Halea Eaton Experience. Capable scorer and will do so, although she doesn't blow up the box score. The impact she can make on a game beyond the point total, however, is monumental. There was a D2 school in the house for Halea Thursday, and I can only hope/imagine they saw what I saw in the 2nd half.

- Well, would you look at that... there was a good crowd! And a student section! What is this? What is life? Where am I?... ok, maybe I shouldn't be that dramatic. But it was certainly refreshing to see a good crowd out for a Thursday night game that didn't start until around 8:10. The community support was refreshing - and that level of support was possible because in the STAC, boys & girls play on different nights. No split crowds because some are at one site and some at the other. On Thursday night, the girls were the show, and hundreds were there for it. My annual beef with many of Section 2's leagues. The Foothills got it right when they moved girls to Mon/Thurs while keeping boys at Tues/Fri. Meanwhile, we have pretty much everyone else - on both sides - always playing Tues/Fri. I'm sure the two main arguments in response are 'it makes scheduling easier' and always my favorite, 'it's always been this way'. I'm just a lowly girls basketball guy and my rant doesn't matter, I know. What I do know is that I was happy to see last night's crowd at Norwich, and I wish I could see a crowd like that for a regular season game more often. With the scheduling system in place for many S2 leagues right now... I'm afraid that's impossible.