http://cranford.patch.com/articles/with-strong-defense-cranford-defeats-johnson
With Strong Defense, Cranford Defeats Johnson
Girls' basketball team wins 39-23.
In a Nutshell: The Cranford girls put on another disruptive defensive display on Tuesday evening, holding A.L. Johnson to just three first-half points en route to a 39-23 victory in Cranford.
The Record: In three of their four victories this season, the Cougars (4-2) have limited their opponents to 23 points of fewer, including a 7-point clampdown of Hudson Catholic on Dec. 18. They produced 17 steals in an opening round victory over Livingston last week at the West Orange Holiday Classic, and added 13 more against Johnson.
The Heroes: Dynamic sophomore Jess McCoy netted 12 out of 13 points, also leading the way with 12 rebounds and two assists.
"Jess can be great," said Cranford coach Jackie Dyer. "One thing about her is she doesn't back down. She may miss three or four shots in a row, but she's always hustling back on defense to try to get the ball back and try again."
In the first half, Mairead McKeary delivered a nifty wraparound pass up the lane to Kaitlyn McGovern for a lay-up, and Jenna Goeller's steal and pass ahead to McCoy made it 12-3. McCoy added a 12-footer in the lane and a rebound basket as the Cougars carried a 16-3 lead into halftime. Thanks to forcing 15 turnovers, Cranford got off 15 more shots in the first half, allowing it to overcome a chilly 7-of-29 shooting performance.
The Rundown: This one was ugly from the beginning before Cranford finally got clicking offensively after a woeful first period. Despite making only 2 of 16 shots in the quarter, the Cougars led 6-3. Kate Matthews scored inside for Johnson a minute-and-a-half into the game, but the Crusaders wouldn't score another field goal for 15 minutes, and would add only one free throw in that time.
Cranford missed 17 of its first 19 shots and 20 of its first 23 but made 4 of 6 over the final 3:55 of the first half to begin to pull away.
Johnson (3-2), which came into the game averaging nearly 50 points a game, made 10 of 34 shots and turned it over 24 times. Cranford turned it over only eight times and allowed only eight offensive rebounds, numbers that also had Dyer pleased.
Wrapping up: But if this one seemed all but done, Johnson tried to make a game of it by scoring two baskets in the opening 50 seconds of the second half to narrow the lead to 16-7. McKeary hit an 8-footer along the baseline and Goeller knocked down the Cougars' first three-pointer of the game, but five straight points by Kristy Pflug had the Crusaders within nine, and Matthews had an open 10-footer to close the gap further. The shot rimmed out and Morgan Miller righted the ship for Cranford by knocking down a deep three-pointer from the top of the circle to spark a 9-0 run and put it away.
McCoy got a steal and breakaway basket, and then delivered a pass inside to McGovern for another easy bucket. McGovern got a steal and lay-in at the buzzer and Cranford led 30-12 after three periods. Sarah Gugliucci came off the bench in the final period to knock down a pair of three-pointers. After going 0 of 5 from deep in the first half, the Cougars made 4 of 7 down the stretch.
Overall, Cranford made just 16 of 55 shots, despite crisp passing against the Johnson zone. Goeller had four of the Cougars' 11 assists, with McCoy, McGovern and Miller each handing out a pair. McGovern had 10 points, five rebounds and two steals. Gugliucci added six points, with Miller scoring five points, grabbing three rebounds and snagging two steals. McKeary also had four rebounds.
"We're doing a better job of controlling the tempo of the game," Dyer said. "We're relaxing on offense and getting out shots in flow. We're going to the basket and working the ball inside more. We don't want to just be known as an outside-shooting team."
The Quote: "We did what we've been working on," Dyer said. "This was the first game where we did everything to a tee on defense. The shots aren't always going to fall for us, but if we shut them down and they can't score, we'll be okay.
"We got them out of their rhythm. When (Matthews) would catch the ball and turn around, we had three defenders standing there. We're working on fronting the post and being better inside defenders. I couldn't have asked for better defense."
What's Next: Cranford travels to 5-1 Union Catholic on Thursday.
"Union Catholic is also a very good defensive team," Dyer said. "They like to control the tempo the game and we like to get down the floor. We need to make sure they don't slow us down."
The Record: In three of their four victories this season, the Cougars (4-2) have limited their opponents to 23 points of fewer, including a 7-point clampdown of Hudson Catholic on Dec. 18. They produced 17 steals in an opening round victory over Livingston last week at the West Orange Holiday Classic, and added 13 more against Johnson.
The Heroes: Dynamic sophomore Jess McCoy netted 12 out of 13 points, also leading the way with 12 rebounds and two assists.
"Jess can be great," said Cranford coach Jackie Dyer. "One thing about her is she doesn't back down. She may miss three or four shots in a row, but she's always hustling back on defense to try to get the ball back and try again."
In the first half, Mairead McKeary delivered a nifty wraparound pass up the lane to Kaitlyn McGovern for a lay-up, and Jenna Goeller's steal and pass ahead to McCoy made it 12-3. McCoy added a 12-footer in the lane and a rebound basket as the Cougars carried a 16-3 lead into halftime. Thanks to forcing 15 turnovers, Cranford got off 15 more shots in the first half, allowing it to overcome a chilly 7-of-29 shooting performance.
The Rundown: This one was ugly from the beginning before Cranford finally got clicking offensively after a woeful first period. Despite making only 2 of 16 shots in the quarter, the Cougars led 6-3. Kate Matthews scored inside for Johnson a minute-and-a-half into the game, but the Crusaders wouldn't score another field goal for 15 minutes, and would add only one free throw in that time.
Cranford missed 17 of its first 19 shots and 20 of its first 23 but made 4 of 6 over the final 3:55 of the first half to begin to pull away.
Johnson (3-2), which came into the game averaging nearly 50 points a game, made 10 of 34 shots and turned it over 24 times. Cranford turned it over only eight times and allowed only eight offensive rebounds, numbers that also had Dyer pleased.
Wrapping up: But if this one seemed all but done, Johnson tried to make a game of it by scoring two baskets in the opening 50 seconds of the second half to narrow the lead to 16-7. McKeary hit an 8-footer along the baseline and Goeller knocked down the Cougars' first three-pointer of the game, but five straight points by Kristy Pflug had the Crusaders within nine, and Matthews had an open 10-footer to close the gap further. The shot rimmed out and Morgan Miller righted the ship for Cranford by knocking down a deep three-pointer from the top of the circle to spark a 9-0 run and put it away.
McCoy got a steal and breakaway basket, and then delivered a pass inside to McGovern for another easy bucket. McGovern got a steal and lay-in at the buzzer and Cranford led 30-12 after three periods. Sarah Gugliucci came off the bench in the final period to knock down a pair of three-pointers. After going 0 of 5 from deep in the first half, the Cougars made 4 of 7 down the stretch.
Overall, Cranford made just 16 of 55 shots, despite crisp passing against the Johnson zone. Goeller had four of the Cougars' 11 assists, with McCoy, McGovern and Miller each handing out a pair. McGovern had 10 points, five rebounds and two steals. Gugliucci added six points, with Miller scoring five points, grabbing three rebounds and snagging two steals. McKeary also had four rebounds.
"We're doing a better job of controlling the tempo of the game," Dyer said. "We're relaxing on offense and getting out shots in flow. We're going to the basket and working the ball inside more. We don't want to just be known as an outside-shooting team."
The Quote: "We did what we've been working on," Dyer said. "This was the first game where we did everything to a tee on defense. The shots aren't always going to fall for us, but if we shut them down and they can't score, we'll be okay.
"We got them out of their rhythm. When (Matthews) would catch the ball and turn around, we had three defenders standing there. We're working on fronting the post and being better inside defenders. I couldn't have asked for better defense."
What's Next: Cranford travels to 5-1 Union Catholic on Thursday.
"Union Catholic is also a very good defensive team," Dyer said. "They like to control the tempo the game and we like to get down the floor. We need to make sure they don't slow us down."
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