Strong OA Defense Silences Sharon Girls Hoop

Strong defense throughout helped the Oliver Ames varsity girls basketball team defeat host , 63-34, Friday night.

The Eagles (6-7) repeatedly found themselves shooting with seconds remaining on the shot clock in the first half.

The Tigers (13-1) often limited Sharon to one shot, snaring most of the rebounds.

Many of those rebounds led to Oliver Ames points.

OA led, 28-11, at halftime.

"We went to our strengths tonight," Oliver Ames head coach Elaine Clement-Holbrook said.

"I think defensively, we dictate a lot of what happens. We score off our defense, which is one of the things we really pride ourselves on."

Clement-Holbrook said the Tigers focused early on shutting down Sharon's three-point shooting prowess, "because once they got a rhythm going ...

"In the second half, they started getting their range back. And that can be really dangerous, because they're really high-percentage three-point shooters," she said.

The Tigers led, 33-14, early in the third quarter before the Eagles hit three straight three-pointers, two by sophomore guard Lily Abarbanel and one by sophomore guard Andrea Bender.

That 9-5 run cut OA's to 15, 38-23.

OA then scored the next eight points, building the lead to 23.

Sharon head coach Kate Horsmann said the Eagles again struggled against a pressure defense.

"I think OA is better than us. They're a great team. It would've been nice to play a little bit better against them," she said.

"We play hard. We just need to learn."

Abarbenel led Sharon with 15 points. Bender added 8.

Oliver Ames was led by senior forward and co-captain Candace Steadman's 21 points. Junior guard-forward Caitlyn Abela added 12.

Both teams are off until Tuesday night. Sharon travels to Foxborough at 6:45 p.m., while Oliver Ames visits Stoughton at 6:30 p.m.