NORWICH – Norwich’s game plan worked almost to perfection – with the exception of the first eight minutes.
Unbeaten Binghamton scored in transition, was relentless on the offensive glass, and steamrolled Norwich for one quarter. The Pats created a 14-point opening-quarter bulge, and withstood Norwich’s comeback effort to prevail over the Tornado Tuesday night in the STAC semifinals, 60-52.
Caity Kuhnen and Emily Lewis had 14 points apiece to lead four Patriots in double figures. The contest ended with Norwich’s Hannah Runyon banking in shot from just inside halfcourt closing the gap to eight. With that shot, Norwich became the first team all season to finish within 10 points of the Patriots.
“We expected a battle, and we wanted to build a big lead early,” said Binghamton coach Kristin Lemon, who herself had several tough battles on the Tornado’s homecourt during her high school playing days at Maine-Endwell. “Norwich has some good shooters, and we worried about them hitting some shots down the stretch. Their shooters stepped up big in the second half.”
Norwich methodically crawled back into the game after trailing by as many as 21 points early in the second half. Binghamton point guard Tiahana Mills led her club’s offense, especially in transition where she consistently fed teammates for open shots or layups.
Midway through the first quarter, Binghamton ripped off 10 points in a mere two minutes to take the lead for good. Mills hit Caity Kuhnen for a wide-open three and a transition layup, and Kuhnen added a steal and layup for seven straight points. Emily Lewis added a put-back basket after grabbing an offensive rebound, and before Norwich knew it, it trailed 12-4.
Jenny Borfitz interupted that run with a three-point play for Norwich, but three straight baskets by Bingo, the last a three ball by Phoebe Burns upped the lead to 21-7.
“They got us down in a whole, and I thought we had a great gameplan, we just panicked a little bit and didn’t really execute on offense,” said Norwich coach Josh Bennett. “Then we got things more under control and did a much better job offensively. We didn’t always make the shots, but we were getting good shots.”
Mills, who averaged over 13 points per game coming in, had just six in this contest. Yet, she had two timely – and athletic – baskets at the end of the first and second quarters. With time ticking down in the first, she drove inside and hit a leaner that rolled up and over the rim.
