John Jay Beats Somers at Home to Move One Game Under .500

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After running Somers out of the gym two weeks ago, John Jay gave Somers a second crack at cross town bragging rights. This time at the high school on Friday February 7, a one point second quarter game didn’t look so bad for the visitors. But in almost a blink, John Jay did all the talking that needed to be done.

The Wolves scored 15 straight and galloped to a 58-44 win.

John Jay had the runs to start too, and the first one out of the gate was Sela Halaifonua. The senior picked off a cross court pass, and zipping the ball ahead, Jane Brennan got to the finish line for a 2-0 lead.

The duo was far from done. After Jaime Bartley-Cohen and Natalie Ellrodt kept the possession alive with offensive rebounds, Halaifonua spotted Brennan breaking toward the basket, and the on target pass got Brennan to the rim again. A miss this time, she hit the put back for a 4-0 lead.

In at 4:57, the Wolf pair added a third wheel. Brennan to Halaifonua to Ellrodt in the corner, and seven straight were in the bag.

But Somers fought their way out. Eliana Contreras hit a jumper, and Ashley Kuchinsky and Olivia Allegretti added layups to make it 7-6.

No problem, Halaifonua answered back. She hit from downtown and once again teamed with Brennan next. Under the John Jay basket, Brennan waited for her teammate to make her move, and the pass was right there for two more of Halaifonua’s 29 points.

Still, Somers closed the first and opened the second. Ingraham was on target for three with 43 seconds left in the first, and Kuchinsky tied the game at 12 with 7:10 remaining in the second.

The beginning of the end it turned out. Bartley-Cohen followed Gianna Pelosi’s missed layup, but moments later, Pelosi didn’t need any cleanup from the corner at 4:40.

A couple of free throws by Contreras only prolonging the agony, Halaifonua rubbed it in with her passing. Alone above the arc, the high scorer’s radar spotted Helena Schembri on the diagonal, and the reserve dropped the layup.

Of course, Halaifonua didn’t forget how to play the rest of the game. She hit an open three the next time down and turned a backcourt steal into a 23-15 lead.

Timeout for Somers, the Tuskers responded with a travel, and the turnover had Pelosi staying hot. First from the corner and then coming around a pick, the long jumpers opened a 12 point lead.

Two minutes left in the half, Somers didn’t help themselves by throwing away the inbound, and the old guard made the Tuskers pay again. Brennan taking underneath, she beelined to Halaifonua for a jumper in the paint, and the partners in crime continued to do double duty on yet another miscue. Brennan got the steal in the backcourt, quickly found Halaifonua and her layup made it 31-15.

Sophia Valenzuela finally ended the run with a conventional three point play, and then Allegretti added two more. But John Jay refused to let the Tuskers go into the locker room with momentum, and the usual suspects applied the brakes. Pick and roll, Brennan to Halaifonua and two more foul shots by Brennan closed the half with John Jay up by 14.

Onto the third, the Wolves essentially picking up where they left off. This time Ellrodt and Jordan Kauftheil ran the pick and roll, and an 18 point lead it was at 6:54.

A 4-0 run for Somers did disrupt, so the Wolves twice ran the triathlon to keep the Tuskers in their place. The first time Brennan grabbed the defensive rebound, lofted the ball to Ellrodt and she led Halaifonua in front of the home bleachers for a layup.

In the half court the next time, Halaifonua caught Ellrodt in the paint, and she swung across to Schembri for the open layup.

43-27 at 4:11, Somers did keep fighting, and when Kuchinsky hit from downtown with a minute left in the third, the nine point lead did signal a little hope.

Of course, Somers should have known better since they had seen this movie all game long. Opening the fourth, Brennan drove into the paint, drew the double, and when she turned away, Kauftheil was open for the bounce pass.

The senior went off the glass to regain a double digit lead, and more basketball 101 was on the way. Brennan and Halaifonua again, the pick and roll didn’t mind that Halaifonua followed her miss with a putback.

In with seven minutes to go, John Jay stuck to the basics, and after a 4-8 start, the Wolves are 9-10. One game left to reach .500, Lakeland stands in the way on Thursday.