Mt. Ararat’s Theresa Breed (55) is surrounded by Brunswick’s Charlotte MacMillan (2) and Emily Larochelle during Tuesday’s KVAC girls basketball game at Brunswick. The host Dragons downed the Eagles, 56-31. (Bob Conn / The Times Record)
BRUNSWICK — In baseball, early in the season the rule tends to be that the pitchers are ahead of the hitters.
Through two high school basketball games, Sam Farrell’s Brunswick Dragons might likely say that the defense is ahead of the offense.
On Tuesday in a “Battle of the Bridge” matchup with rival Mt. Ararat, Brunswick shot just 35 percent from the field (21-of-59), but forced the Eagles into 27 turnovers in a 56-31 Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference win, giving the Dragons a perfect 2-0 start to the 2018/19 season.
Mt. Ararat (1-1) made 13-of-39 from the floor (33 percent), and through two games have scored just 70 points.
“We upped our defense, and offense came off of that in the second half. We really pushed having great third quarter energy, and it is defense and rebounding. I will never stop pushing the defense,” Farrell said.
For Eagles coach Andy Morris, he watched his Eagles hang tough with the Dragons, trailing by just two points (13-11) midway through the second quarter. However, the lack of offensive production finally allowed the Dragons to pull away.
“This is a turn-the-corner year, and we are in the teeth of our schedule — Brunswick, Kennebunk (Friday) and Edward Little (Tuesday). We have always had a struggle here, and I feel that we challenged the best team we will face this year. I am proud of these girls,” said Morris. “We have to find a way to put the ball in the hoop. I want them to shoot the ball. We do a lot of shooting in practice.”
Sluggish start
Neither team shot the ball well in the early stages of the first quarter. With 3:05 left on the clock, Mt. Ararat held a
Mt. Ararat’s Kyla Greenleaf (5) heads to the basket while being defended by Brunswick freshman Logan Brown. (Bob Conn / The Times Record)
5-4 lead as the Dragons missed nine of their first 10 shots.
Charlotte MacMillan began a quarter-closing 7-0 run, followed by a 3-pointer from Emily Larochelle and a putback by Alexis Guptill for an 11-5 lead.
Mt. Ararat stayed close in the second quarter as Alexa Eaton and Kyla Greenleaf scored, with Greenleaf answering a Logan Brown bucket for Brunswick to get the Eagles to 13-11.
Brunswick found its game from there. Guptill scored, and MacMillan stepped back in the corner and swished a trey for an 18-11 Dragon lead. Brunswick closed the half on a 14-4 run for a 27-15 edge at the intermission.
“In the first half, we got the shots that we wanted, they just didn’t go in,” said Farrell after his Dragons made 9-of-28 shots through 16 minutes.
The offense kept coming for the hosts in the third quarter, as Brown hit an early 3-pointer. Leading 32-19, consecutive treys by Groat, Larochelle and MacMillan put the Dragons in firm control, with Brunswick leading 43-21 after three quarters.
“We had energy at first, but I felt that we really picked it up in the third quarter,” said Groat, who had six points, eight assists and four steals in the win. “We are pretty good defensively, but I think we will get better during the season.”
Mt. Ararat guard Ainsley Bryant (3) tries to dribble past the defense of Brunswick’s Logan Brown at Brunswick on Tuesday. (Bob Conn / The Times Record)
“Marley is a great passer, but as a team this might be one of the best passing teams that I have had,” Farrell said. “They are all unselfish, almost too unselfish.”
“In the third quarter, (Brunswick) really shot the ball well, and I think they just wore us out, as our close outs were not as good and they got hot,” said Morris. “Our goal was to play a two-minute game, a two-minute game, stay in touch and survive the time. They did exactly what we wanted them to do. The girls never quit.”
Greenleaf was a game-long standout for Mt. Ararat. She did a solid job breaking the Brunswick full-court press, finishing with six points, five assists and three steals.
“We are a lot more confident,” said Greenleaf. “We are proud. We played tonight a lot better against Brunswick than we have in the past.”
In the fourth quarter, the Brunswick advantage grew to a game-high 30 points, 54-24, as Brown finished off her 14-point performance, matching MacMillan for game-high scoring honors. Guptill came off the Brunswick bench for nine points, while Larochelle chipped in six points and pulled down a game-high 12 rebounds as the Dragons finished with a 31-27 edge on the boards. Rosalie White and Hannah Fortier dished out three assists, with the Dragons finishing with 17 helpers on their 21 baskets.
Eaton led Mt. Ararat with eight points, with Grace Liedman adding four points and three steals. Lauren Magno chipped in five points off the Eagle bench.
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