Top-ranked New London beats Waterford with dominating second half
Waterford — It's worth pointing out before getting to the final score that Waterford led New London a minute into the second half of Saturday night's girls' basketball game.
New London responded to the challenge with the kind of play — and effort — that earned it the No. 1 ranking in the GameTimeCT/New Haven Register Top 10 poll for the first time last week.
Hartford-bound senior Jada Lucas had a game-high 17 points with five steals and four rebounds as the Whalers slammed down Waterford in the second half for a 60-34 win.
It was quite a way for the Whalers (13-0) to finish their first week as the state's No. 1 team.
"It makes us feel good," Lucas said about the ranking. "We've never been the number one team in the state, so we're basically a target."
It was New London's 40th straight regular-season win and exactly to the date of its last regular-season loss (to Norwich Free Academy, Jan. 21, 2015).
"Everyone wants to beat the number one team," senior India Pagan said. "As coach (Holly Misto) said, that'll be everybody's state championship.
"It feels really good (to be No. 1). (When you're) number two, you're like, 'We've got to be number one. We've got to be number one.' But we can't let it get to our heads."
Pagan, who has committed to Stony Brook, dominated inside with 10 points and 12 rebounds. Junior Rosalee Nicholson had 13 points and five rebounds, and sophomore Xaryia Melendez added 12 points and seven rebounds.
It was a disheartening loss for the Lancers (8-4), who've shown they can hang with the ECC's best. Among their other losses were to No. 10 Bacon Academy (44-35, Dec. 20) and NFA (38-36, Jan. 13).
"I was disappointed because the girls have to fight through adversity," Waterford coach Mark Capasso said. "We've been in mostly close games and things can go either way. … Anything can happen. Do the things you practice."
Senior post Kayla Jean-Pierre's short jumper gave Waterford a 24-23 less than a minute into the second half, its third lead of the game.
New London fired back with an 9-0 run. Pagan scored five of those points.
"Tonight I felt when things started going wrong, instead of fighting for each other, the kids were getting upset and got away from the game plan," Capasso said. "That's on me. I can't let them do that."
Jean-Pierre had 14 points and five rebounds for the Lancers and classmate Mia Brennan added six points, four steals and three assists.
Waterford's zone defense gave the Whalers fits in the first half. They struggled to get the ball inside, a team strength, or make perimeter shots.
Lucas' 3-pointer at the buzzer gave New London a 21-20 halftime lead.
The game's biggest play came with over a minute left in the third quarter and the Whalers leading, 36-30. New London sophomore guard K.D. Spencer Roman took a charge from Jean-Pierre for the latter's fourth foul.
Jean-Pierre went to the bench. The Whalers ripped the game open with a 14-0 run to go ahead, 50-30, with over five minutes remaining. Lucas made back-to-back 3-pointers during that stretch.
"The game turned on that play," Capasso said. "Instead of us cutting it to three (a layup and a foul shot), it stayed six. … and we had to take (Jean-Pierre) out. They scored two or three quick baskets, and instead of it being a three-point game, you're down 10 or 12. It's almost impossible to come back on them."
It was a gutsy play by Roman, especially given her past. Hartford Capital's Desiree Elmore obliterated Roman's jaw with an elbow in last season's CIAC Class L final. Roman also took a shot to the jaw in the first half against Waterford.
"(Assistant) coach Missy (Parker) said that when the charge happened, she jumped up (off the bench) and started clapping loudly," Pagan said. "We were just literally talking in the locker room about how excited we were for Spencer."
Lucas said, "Throwing her body (around), she's tough. She's a Roman."
n.griffen@theday.com
Comment threads are monitored for 48 hours after publication and then closed.