By Dylan Butler
While Rutgers-bound Rebecca Richman did score 18 points for Brooklyn Tech, it was the balanced scoring attack of Francis Lewis that prevailed. Led by sophomore Teresa Rozza, who netted a game-high 20 points to become the first Patriot to score more than 15 points in a game, Francis Lewis defeated the Engineers, 53-47.
“This is a team sport and that is what we go by,” said Rozza, who also had five assists and was named the tournament MVP. “We can pull off a lot as long as we have a team effort. The whole point of our team is teamwork.”
The win improved Francis Lewis' record to a perfect 12-0 and clinched the Patriots second straight Wingate tournament title. It also solidified Mike Eisenberg's squad's standing as one of the top teams in the PSAL.
“We haven't proven that we're in the top two in the city because we still have Murry Bergtraum and Sheepshead Bay to worry about,” Rozza said. “I'd say we're at least in the top 10. It just proves that if we work hard, we can compete with everyone.”
Sophomore center Alanna Adams scored 10 points and grabbed seven rebounds for Francis Lewis, freshman Jasmine Lawrence netted nine and sophomore Maria Miaoulis had eight points and seven boards, but it was Rozza who was able to find openings and successfully drive through the lane for easy buckets.
“We tried to dribble penetrate, work off the dribble,” Eisenberg said. “We'd either hit the 12-foot jumper or dish and Teresa took the ball to the basket. She hit a couple of shots, drew some fouls, had a couple of assists. She was one person who could create.”
Defensively, the Patriots did a good job of limiting Richman to 18 points. Brooklyn Tech's 6-foot-4 senior center was double- and triple-teamed whenever she touched the ball in the paint and scored most of her points on putbacks.
“Alanna Adams did a great job on her, playing behind her and boxing her out,” Eisenberg said. “Their size was very impressive. One thing that hurts us is size and [Richman] is a good player.”
With the Patriots zone defense collapsing on Richman, Brooklyn Tech (11-1) almost made Lewis pay from the outside as senior Timiya Jackson scored 18 points on five three-pointers and three free throws when she was fouled on an attempt from downtown.
But the Engineers lost the game from the foul line, going 9-for-22 from the stripe. The Engineers also missed 6-foot-2 senior center Tanika Price, who twisted her knee two weeks ago in a game against Madison.
“Free throw shooting killed us. We missed 10 or 11 in a row at one point,” said Brooklyn Tech coach Jay Russinoff. “We played five most of the game and got tired. [Jackson] hit some big shots, but in the end we wore down a bit.”
As expected in a battle between two of the city's elite teams, the game was nip-and-tuck throughout, with neither team able to open up a sizable advantage. Francis Lewis led 7-6 at the end of the first quarter, but Tech came right back and scored five straight points to take an 11-7 lead.
The Patriots answered right back, going on an 8-0 run, capped by Miaoulis' bucket from the left side to regain the lead, 15-11, with 3:41 left in the half. Francis Lewis led 19-18 at the break and 34-33 after three quarters.
Two straight Jackson threes gave Brooklyn Tech a 39-36 lead with 7:13 left in the game, but four free throws and an Adams putback gave Lewis a 42-39 edge and the Patriots would not trail again.
A three-pointer from the top of the top of the key by Diane Ramirez gave Lewis its largest lead of the game, 47-41, with 1:13 to go. Tech got as close as 47-44 with 50.3 seconds remaining on two made free throws by Richman, but Rozza went 4-for-4 from the line in the final 41.7 seconds and, after Richman converted an old-fashioned three point play, Miaoulis ended the game with an uncontested layup.
Cardozo 69, FDR 51. The Judges were led by Shavonne Roundtree, who scored 29 points in the consolation game of the Wingate Christmas/Kwanzaa Tournament last Thursday. Kelly Kaso also netted 15 points for Cardozo (10-4), which led 40-19 at the half. Natalie Garcia had 24 points and Sabrina Carollo added 13 for FDR (5-6).
John Adams 39, Thomas Jefferson 28. Jennifer Porrazzo netted six points and was named the game's MVP and Dinorah Diaz added 12 for the Spartans (9-0) in the High Profile/Queens Suboa Christmas Tournament at John Jay College last Thursday. Jefferson fell to 10-1.
Flushing 47, EBC 17. Monet Pledger and game MVP Shaniqua Edmunds each scored 13 points to lead Flushing (2-13) in the High Profile/Queens Suboa Christmas Tournament.
Environmental Studies 59, Franklin K. Lane 37. Morganna Green scored 22 points and was named MVP for Enviornmental Studies. Iris Cartagena led Lane with 13 points in the High Profile/Queens Suboa Christmas Tournament.
