LEE, Mass. – Lee girls basketball coach Rick Puleri said he talked to his players about not letting their emotions get too high or too low in Tuesday’s rematch against undefeated Easthampton.
But sometimes an emotional boost can come in handy.
Caroline Maloney gave the Wildcats just that when she dropped in a shot from half court to beat the buzzer at the end of the third quarter, giving Lee a 43-37 lead en route to a 59-47 victory.
“That was a big shot, certainly in terms of momentum and giving you some energy, and good for her for having the awareness to get the shot off in the first place,” Puleri said.
Maloney agreed that the shot was a game-changer.
“After making that, we just had all the energy,” she said. “And going into the next quarter, we knew that we had the energy, and we all were excited for it.”
Lee had led by as many as eight in the third quarter, but Easthampton used a 11-3 run to tie the game with 1:10 left when Maria Belfakih (17 points) stole the ball out of the Eagles’ press and immediately scored to make it 37-37.
Moments later, Maloney took the ball over half-court on the right side and pulled up momentarily, apparently ready to let Lee set up its halfcourt offense.
But in the blink of an eye, she switched gears, blowing by the Eagles before they could set their defense, getting to the rack and earning an and-one. Maloney converted her free throw to give Lee a 40-37 lead it never relinquished.
Her long-distance triple to end the quarter pushed the lead to six, and Lee opened the fourth quarter with an 8-3 spurt to grab the game’s first double-digit margin, 51-40, when Emma Puleri converted Brianna Kelly’s assist with a bucket in the post midway through the fourth.
Puleri finished with a game-high 22 points. Maloney scored 18, and Kelly had a double-double with 10 points and 12 rebounds.
“[Kelly] has been playing really well,” Rick Puleri said. “And honestly, she’s been sitting on a big game. I’ve been saying it to my assistant coaches all year long. She’s a competitor, and we need that from her.
“When she can do that, we’re a much tougher team.”
Maloney and Puleri combined to go 6-for-7 at the foul line down the stretch to preserve the lead, which got as high as 15 before Easthampton hit a 3-pointer in the final seconds.
Back in the first half, it looked like the game would finish with anything but a double-digit lead for either team. It looked more like the 32-29 squeaker that the Eagles won at their place back on Jan. 25.
Maloney scored in transition late in the first quarter to give Lee an 11-8 lead, but Easthampton answered with seven straight points to go ahead by four early in the second.
The Wildcats trailed by as many as five before righting the ship and taking a three-point lead into the locker room after Mia Puleri drove the lane for a score to make it 25-22.
Lee opened up that margin a little in the third quarter before Easthampton made its last stand with the 11-3 run that featured five points from Lauren Morse, who finished with 15.
Tuesday’s win continued a five-game winning streak for the Wildcats and qualified Lee (10-3) for the state tournament.
Lee will look to improve its tourney resume on Thursday when it travels to Southwick.
