Derrick Webb, Staff Writer
SARDINIA — Togetherness.
That’s what Eastern Brown used to dismantle — and yes, that’s the correct word — Dayton Trotwood-Madison on Saturday.
CREDIT: Jenny Webb/SOSA
Playing on their home court, the Warriors (16-2) threw the first right hook out of the gates and kept a leadfoot on the gas from that point forward in a 71-45 victory.
“We haven’t been able to get [a fast start]. We always come out ready to play in the third quarter,” Eastern’s Bailey Dotson said. “Tonight, we came out in the first half and kept them down. That’s been happening to us in our losses. We just have to go out there, score first and get our energy up.”
Dotson took those words personally in the first quarter, where she had eight points. The junior guard sliced and diced her way through the Rams’ defense, giving the Warriors a 10-3 lead with 3:36 remaining. Mackenzie Gloff then added a score before Emma Prine dialed long distance.
Following Prine’s triple, one of many, Rylee Leonard ended the quarter with a bucket to stretch the advantage to 19-5 heading to the second.
“We just passed the ball as a team a lot better today,” Prine said. “We played as a team. We don’t want to have to rely on one person every night. We want to work as a team and just keep getting better.”
WATCH AGAIN: Live broadcast of Eastern’s win over Trotwood-Madison
Prine hit another triple with 7:03 left in the second, making it a 22-8 ballgame, before nailing back-to-back treys at the 4:29 and 3:54 marks, pushing the lead to 28-11 — and ending a personal 9-3 run.
Leonard and Dotson teamed up to end the half on a 12-4 run, making it a 40-15 tally at the break.
“We’ve had two looses but we just have to keep working together,” Dotson said. “We saw today that if we just keep moving the ball, shots are going to go down. If another team shuts Rylee [Leonard] down, we have to learn how to work off of her and create plays. That’s going to be key for us moving forward.”
Not much changed in the third, however, the Warriors did have some issues taking care of the basketball … certainly something coach Kevin Pickerill will work on with his group moving forward.
But despite 23 turnovers, compared to Trotwood’s eight, Eastern continued to pour it on.
Prine hit a triple with 7:12 left in the third — because who else? — making it 43-15 before Emma Brown and Caitlyn Wills pushed the lead to 60-30 early in the fourth quarter.
And, as they say, that’s all she wrote.
Prine ended the night with 19 points and eight rebounds while Leonard followed with 14 points, five rebounds and six assists. Dotson had 12 points, four boards and five assists, and Gloff finished the night with 10 points and seven rebounds.
Quantajiah Huffman led Trotwood-Madison with 15 points and six rebounds while Raeven Raye-Redmond ended with 13 points. Sparcle Leigh also chipped in with 12 points.
Eastern now shifts its attention towards Lynchburg-Clay, who they host on Monday, before a rematch with North Adams on Saturday — who beat the Warriors this past week by a 44-40 final.
“Jumping out on [North Adams] in the first quarter is key, like we did tonight,” Prine said. “We have to jump out on them quickly and stay focused.”
BOX SCORE
Trotwood-Madison: 5-10-13-17 — 45
Eastern Brown: 19-21-12-19 — 71
Trotwood-Madison: 18-69 FG, 6-13 FT, 3-22 3pt., 22 rebounds (Huffman 6), 8 turnovers, 2 assists (Dixon 1, Raye-Redmond 1). Scoring: Huffman 15, Raye-Redmond 13, Leigh 12, Mcintyre 3, Chambers 2.
Eastern Brown: 26-51 FG, 14-21 FT, 5-12 3pt., 44 rebounds (Brown 9), 23 turnovers, 16 assists (Leonard 6). Scoring: Prine 19, Leonard 14, B. Dotson 12, Gloff 10, Brown 6, Wills 4, Barber 3, Dixon 2, M. Dotson 1.