PORTLAND — Ashley Howe netted 20 points, Cassidy Cochrane added 15, and Alex Hart dished out eight assists to go along with six points as the Thornton Academy Golden Trojans (9-3) dominated the Portland Bulldogs 54-27 at the Portland Expo in a Class AA girls basketball matchup.
The Trojans started the game with an 11-0 run keyed by Kaylee Burns’ five points and two steals. In the early going Thornton Academy coach Eric Marston thought “the pace was in their favor,” which led to their controlling the rest of the contest. After one period, the score was 13-3 in favor of the Trojans.
The Trojans continued their suffocating defense in the second quarter – and also turned on the scoring. At the half, the Trojans held a 34-11 lead over the Bulldogs.
The Trojans forced six turnovers in the first half and only turned the ball over four times. Additionally, the team assisted 10 of their 13 baskets.
Thornton Academy again held the Bulldogs (0-11) under 10 points in the third quarter, giving up just seven to their 18. Howe and Cochrane went on individual spurts, dominating the game for minutes at a time under the basket and on the boards. Howe also showed her range knocking down a 3-pointer midway through the third period on an assist from Hart.
With a 52-18 lead heading into the fourth quarter, Thornton Academy Coach Eric Marston decided to put in the reserves. The final score was 54-27.
Thornton Academy mixed up their defense throughout the game running both a full-court press and a half-court set. Marston wanted to “play a little bit more up tempo and tried to speed them up a little bit.”
Coming off an overtime thriller, a 40-34 win at Deering, the Trojans found their stride knocking off the Bulldogs in convincing fashion. Looking ahead, Thornton Academy returns home to play South Portland on Wednesday and Cheverus on Friday before hosting undefeated Gorham in a pivotal matchup on Tuesday Jan. 26.
Marston said, “there was a lot left on the table” regarding the previous matchup with Gorham, a loss in which Thornton Academy trailed by a mere four points heading into third quarter.
All games start at 7 p.m. at Linnell Gymnasium in Saco.
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