Bedford girls basketball rolls in 2nd half to get win against Salem (video)

BEDFORD - There are three things the Bedford High School girls basketball team needs to do to play the way the Bulldogs want to.

They've got to get out in transition when they can, and if they can't, they've got to execute on offense. Add that to a lockdown defense, and Bedford's ability consistently do all three is a big reason why it went into Thursday's regular-season finale undefeated.

After getting away from those things in the first half against Salem, the Bulldogs recalibrated and rolled, turning a 10-point advantage into an 82-32 win over the Blue Devils in the final Division I game for both teams.

Kate Allard had a game-high 21 points and Lana McCarthy scored 18 points, as Bedford (18-0) outscored Salem 28-2 in the third quarter and held the Blue Devils to seven points in the second half.

"We didn’t do the things we needed to do," Bedford coach Kevin Gibbs said. "When we went in at halftime to talk, we said we needed to do what we do. They’re a good team, and let’s respect that, but let’s lock down on the defensive end.

"The reality is when you get out and run the way we can run and defend the way we can defend, it’s hard for teams to score on us. (Salem coach) Ricky (Oliver) did a great job with them. Their kids were fast and they moved constantly. We simplified our game in the second half and we were successful."

Lyla Stein and Sarah Muir were also in double figures, scoring 12 and 10 points, respectively, for Bedford.

Lindsay Goetz had nine points to lead Salem (13-5) while Lillian George had seven points and Makayla Burns chipped in with six. All three did all of their scoring in the first half, when the Blue Devils were able to keep things close before the Bulldogs took a 35-25 lead into halftime.

"The first half was amazing," Oliver said. "I think we challenged Bedford to the point they had to dig in and play. They probably looked at us, looked at our size, and thought they were going to get everything. My kids are tough and they’re little pesky things and they want to come out here and play. I think they did a good job, the score doesn’t show that, but they worked hard."

Salem never led, but a 3-pointer by George with about 40 seconds left in the first quarter got the Blue Devils within one points, 16-15. Bedford took a 20-16 lead into the second, then used an 8-2 run to go up 28-18.

But Salem didn't let the Bulldogs pull away, staying within a few possessions for the rest of the half.

"We were leaving our player too early (on defense)," Gibbs said. "We were wandering and looking to double the ball, which is not what our jump-switching M.O. is all about. Own you’re player and switch only if you have to."

With the defense keeping Salem off the board, Bedford was able to get out in transition, and in just over two minutes to start the third, the Bulldogs scored eight straight points and led 43-25. Oliver took a timeout just 2:14 into the half, but it was more of the same after that, as Bedford scored 26 straight points.

"They scored 10 (points) like quick and the wheels just kind of fell off," Oliver said. "You play a great first half and how do you come back when a team scores eight or 10 on you right away? Where is your resiliency to come back?"

With a roster full of juniors and sophomores, Oliver hopes it's a lesson the Blue Devils will learn and take with them into the postseason. The Division I tournament gets underway on Tuesday.

Bedford will be the No. 1 seed and get a bye into the quarterfinals on March 1. Salem will be the No. 5 seed and will host a preliminary-round game on Tuesday.