New Ro Girls Basketball Beats Mamaroneck

It was a game of runs for the New Rochelle Huguenots girls basketball team Thursday evening in a Conference 2 League 4 match-up against Mamaroneck at Mamaroneck's Palmer gym.

The Huguenots (12-5) used an 11-2 first quarter run, coupled with a 10-2 third quarter outburst to defeat the home-standing Tigers 42-30.

The game started slowly, as both teams had trouble setting up their half-court offense. 90 seconds in, Randy Degina gave Mamaroneck a 3-2 lead with a long three from the wing. It was the only lead the Tigers would have all game.

With 3:26 left in the first and the Tigers trailing by three, Nikki Smith, playing with a large brace on her right knee, put home the rebound off a Danielle DeAndrea miss. When New Rochelle was called for a foul on the play, Smith put home the free throw to add to her team-high seven points and cut the New Rochelle lead to 8-6.

But then the Huguenots went on that 11-2 first quarter run to close out the quarter, highlighted by a three-pointer from Alexandra Bonilla (eight points). New Rochelle led after one 19-8 and never looked back.

Mamaroneck (7-10) won the second quarter 6-4 and the fourth quarter by a 14-9 margin, but the third quarter saw New Rochelle go on a 10-2 run spanning the entire eight minutes of the period.

Mamaroneck, playing without sophomore starting point guard Abby Baigelman (twisted ankle), just couldn't get into a solid offensive rhythm, and with Nikki Smith hampered by her right knee issue, Mamaroneck was out-rebounded on the glass by a large margin over the course of the game.

In fact, Mamaroneck's only points of the third period came from the charity stripe, when DeAndrea (five points) netted two of them on free throws with 2:30 left.

With that third quarter inside of its final 40 seconds, Bonilla drove baseline, and put in an athletic underhanded reverse layup, smacking it high off the window and in, giving New Rochelle a 33-16 lead, which they took into the fourth.

Mamaroneck's valiant fourth quarter comeback, including a three-pointer from seldom-used sophomore guard Nina Kumar, wasn't enough. Kumar's three-pointer was her first trey of the season, and gave her eight points on the year.

Despite a game-high 14 points scored by the Tigers in the fourth, New Rochelle was able to hang on for the 42-30 win.

New Rochelle's Gabby Morrow led all scorers with 10 points, including two three-pointers in the first quarter. Smith and Randi Degina led all Tigers with seven. Mamaroneck had six of its nine available players score.

The Tigers play their final game of the regular season on Monday when they travel to Scarsdale (8-8). The Class AA Sectional Playoffs begin on Thursday with out-bracket games. Opponent and location will be announced Wednesday morning.

LMC-TV filmed this afternoon's game between Mamaroneck and New Rochelle. They will air it Friday, Feb. 12 - Sunday, Feb. 14 at 8:00 p.m.; and Saturday, Feb. 13 - Monday, Feb. 15 at 1:00 p.m.