Fast start helps drive Nashua North girls basketball to win over Nashua South
The Nashua High School North girls basketball team had plenty of reason to want to get Friday's game going.
NASHUA - The Nashua High School North girls basketball team had plenty of reason to want to get Friday's game going.
Not only were the Titans set to take on rival Nashua South, but they were coming off a rough loss their last time on the court.
North came out playing a determined brand of basketball, jumping out to a 17-point lead in the first quarter on the way to a 56-26 win over the Panthers in Division I action at Nashua South.
Alana Choate led the way for the Titans (7-5) with 15 points, going 6 of 8 from the line, while Isabel Dunning had eight points and Danielle Upton and Peyton Ryan each added seven. Nine different player scored for North, which was coming off a 20-point loss at Keene on Wednesday.
"We had a chat as a team (Thursday), kind of going over everything," North coach Christina Collins said. "They had finals, it's a long bus ride to Keene, it was a lot of excuses. We talked about excuses not getting you very far, and they all stepped up and said we need to be better. They did."
The Titans led 22-5 at the end of the first quarter, pushed the lead to 20 in the second and took a 33-9 advantage into halftime.
"We came out a little flat," South coach Dan Wyborney said. "They jumped out on us and put us back on our heels, and we didn't respond. In a game like that, if you don't respond right away, it's going to put you behind the eight ball. It's going to put you behind pretty quick. We didn't have the horses to change that."
Amber Hedquist had a team-high 10 points for South (2-10), while Kendall Bush added six points and Kirsten McIntire chipped in with five.
South struggled early on against North's full-court pressure, something that Wyborney was surprised to see.
"We faced it with Bedford and BG, and we handled it very well," he said. "It was the first time we've cracked. We didn't step up to the occasion and make that clear pass. We forced it in somewhere it didn't need to go. Instead of trying to execute something to make the press break, they made poor decisions."
After the loss to Keene, Collins felt the Titans needed to try something to get their energy from the start of the game.
"We struggled on Wednesday with some energy, so it was like 'girls this is it, this is your first eight minutes to show us something,' " Collins said. "They accepted it and they have that ability. They can play, they have good hands, to get that started."
Both teams play against on Tuesday, as South hosts Londonderry and North entertains Manchester Memorial.
