Basketball notebook: Quincy girls climb power rankings
Quincy is a contender.
With a strong starting five of Frankie Diaz, Rory Kennedy, Niamh Gendron, Alyssa Hopps, and Taylor Mann, Quincy is 9-2 and the No. 5 overall seed in the latest MIAA Power Rankings.
The Presidents can score inside or out. Gendro and Hopps provide head coach Sarah Conlon with a powerful one-two punch in the post. Gendron is averaging 15.3 points and 7.8 rebounds; Hopps’ numbers are even more impressive. The senior, who reached the 1,000-point plateau for her career on Dec. 30, is putting up 17.6 points and 12 rebounds a game. Diaz, Kennedy, and Mann are all good shooters from long range. Diaz, meanwhile, is tallying five assists a night as the team’s primary facilitator.
“I think we’re really balanced,” Cohen said. “Our two post players complement each other and our three guards can all shoot. Anyone in our starting five can have a big night. We’re getting multiple contributions from different people on different days.”
Quincy has allowed over 50 points on just two occasions — both losses. But the losses provided lessons for Conlon’s group.
“Whitman Hanson showed us earlier that we are a big game for everyone,” she said. “You are the ‘big game’ for a lot of teams and we want to embrace that.”
Over the last two seasons the Presidents have won 33 regular season games. Each of those years have been followed with a state tournament win before an exit. This time around, however, Quincy is determined to translate their regular season success into a deeper postseason run. That mission is reflected in the President’s non-league schedule this year. They hosted Notre Dame Academy (a 67-49 win). On Jan. 23, the Presidents visit Division 1 power Braintree.
Those contests surround a Patriot League schedule that consists of Division 2 contender Whitman-Hanson and Duxbury as well as fellow Fisher Division challenger Pembroke.
“We want to challenge ourselves with teams who have had great years in the past that will help us hopefully,” Conlon said.
Quincy travels to Duxbury for a key Patriot League crossover matchup on Jan. 21 before the Thursday road challenge with the Wamps before finishing up the week against Plymouth South.
Tough road for Newton North, Andover
A pair of Eastern Mass. boys teams took the trip to Springfield College to play in the annual HoopHall classic. Newton North faced off against Albany (Calif.) and fell 58-53 in overtime. Teagan Swint scored a team-high 20 points in the loss for the Tigers who were making their sixth appearance in the event. Andover fell to Connecticut power Notre Dame-West Haven, 51-37. Both Andover and Newton North are ranked in the Boston Herald’s top 10 of its latest Eastern Mass. boys top 25 poll.
from Boston Herald https://ift.tt/1jGAigV
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