Dicey Strategy Succeeds for Bayside Girls Basketball

Bayside girls basketball coach  admits that his five-in, five-out substitution strategy is unorthodox, dangerous even. 

In a 34-30 win over Campus Magnet on Thursday, the pattern, which is designed to put pressure on Bayside's starters by making the game more competitive, helped the team score a major upset. 

 (8-2 Queens A East) overcame a 12-point, fourth-quarter deficit to eke out its fourth straight win. After defeating Campus Magnet 63-12 on Dec. 3, the Lady Commodores were lucky to escape Cambria Heights with a win.

Campus Magnet fell to 4-7 in Queens A East.

The Hero: Junior forward labored at the foul line throughout the game. When she stepped to the line with 32 seconds to play, she had shot 3-of-12 on free throws for the game.

 made both shots to seal the victory. She led Bayside with 11 points and six rebounds.

Turning Point: Trailing 30-18 with 6:45 to play in the fourth quarter, Bayside, which had looked listless, made its move. The Lady Commodores' 1-2-1-1 press stymied Campus Magnet's ballhandlers, producing turnovers on three straight possessions.

After Campus Magnet had dominated the third quarter, Bayside ripped off a 12-0 run and the momentum that had eluded it the entire game.

Quotable: "It's unconventional, I guess. I take those 10 (non-starting) girls and play two units of five. I'm trying to see who can basically stick with our starting five in the playoffs as quality replacements," said Bayside coach  on his round-robin, five-at-a-time substition method.

"The only thing I was thinking was, 'I can't let them down," said Bayside junior, on her game-winning free throws.

Bottom Line: Piorkowski's frantic substitution patterns hurt Bayside on Thursday, but the team showed resilience in pulling out the win. The coach has played an extremely deep bench (15 deep) with an eye on the long-term benefits, hoping to put together a consistent rotation by the playoffs.

He'll revert to a more conventional, shorter rotation of players for games against top-tier opponents Hillcrest, Edison, and Forest Hills.

Key Stat: Bayside's Ashley Mitchell had made only three of 12 free throws before sinking two of two with 32 seconds to play to clinch the win.

Next: Bayside hosts Thomas Edison on Tuesday, Jan. 18 at 4:30 p.m.                            

                                          Q1...Q2...Q3...Q4....

Bayside....................2.....9......7...16...34              

Campus Magnet........5....10....11....4...30