Alibozek Sparks McCann to First Victory
SPRINGFIELD, Mass — Scoring enough points to win has definitely been a problem for the McCann Tech girls' basketball team in its six-game losing streak this year. Ashley Alibozek didn't have a hard time finding the bottom of the net on Tuesday night, however, as the Hornets broke out for their first win of the season with a 38-27 victory at Putnam.The senior guard started strong by scoring all 10 of her team's points in the first quarter. The Beavers (0-9) hung around until halftime, though, trailing just 14-12 at the break. McCann (1-6) came through in the second half, however, outscoring the hosts 24-15, including an 11-5 edge in the fourth quarter.
Alibozek finished with a season-high 16 points, cashing in on a pair of 3-pointers on the night, while adding six rebounds.
"It is nice to win a game, and our girls played very well together and as a team," Hornets head coach Kristen Lewis said. "Ashley really stepped up as an offensive threat. I was also happy with the performances of both Cassie Field with her rebounding and Mary Nguyen with controlling the tempo of the game. She had multiple steals that helped us really take charge in the third quarter."
Nguyen had a solid overall game with nine points, six rebounds and four assists, while Field chipped in with seven points and a team-high 10 boards. Believe it or not, but the 38 points the Hornets scored was a season high, just as the 27 Putnam scored was the lowest output they've allowed to an opponent all year long. Add it all up, and McCann had its first win of the 2011-12 season.
"We played very hard in this game," Lewis said. "We came out in the second half ready to fight and do all that we had to in order to win. We really stepped it up when we started pressing. We stole multiple passes and converted them to easy lay-up points. We were able to shut down their big girl, [Justice] Wallace, and hold her to only nine points with our strong defense."
The Hornets next play at Sci-Tech at 7 p.m. on Thursday.