Syosset Girls Basketball Drops Conference Opener to Uniondale

As the first quarter ended on Friday afternoon at Uniondale High School, it looked like the Syosset Braves were in full control. Defensively, they had dominated. Offensively, they were doing just enough. Sure, it was only 8-5 Braves, but the girls were in command.

That all changed in the remaining moments of the first half as Uniondale went on a 10-3 run and never looked back, defeating Syosset 46 -35 Friday evening. Lauren Maturo led all scorers with 19 points and Artiana Wynder paced the Knights with 17.

"The end of the first half was when they started to play hard," Head coach Doug Schumacher said of the late run. "That made the difference."

The Braves appeared to be mounting a comeback at the end of the third quarter, climbing to within three after a Katelyn Lesse 3-pointer. Three quick Maturo points at the end of the third tied it, but the good vibes did not translate into fourth quarter scoring. Uniondale finished the game on a 16-7 run.

"We struggled in the whole second, third and fourth quarter adjusting with our sets because of how physical they were defensively," Schumacher said.

The loss drops the Braves to 0-1 in Conference AA-I. 

Hero: Maturo - The junior dominated the first quarter, scoring six of the Braves opening period points. Her presence down low is a threat that few teams can match. She was repeatedly left open in the paint, leading to easy baskets. Maturo scored the first Syosset basket of the second half, ending a 6-0 Uniondale run. She has finished in double figures in three of the Braves four games, leading the team with 19 twice.

Turning Point: Although the Knights took control of the game at the end of the first half, Syosset was able to fight back in the third. Entering the fourth quarter tied at 28, Uniondale rattled off six consecutive points. After a Briana O'Shaughnessy three brought the Braves within three, Uniondale came alive for the final time. The Knights scored the next eight points, putting the game out of reach.

Quotable: "They [Uniondale] just played harder," Schumacher said. "We made a lot of mistakes in the first half."

Bottom Line: Syosset showed that they can play with a team like Uniondale, but not beat them. The defending conference champion Knights are a difficult team to top, especially on the road. It took Syosset nearly four minutes to score their first basket. This kind of offensive futility can't happen on a game-by-game basis, no matter how stout they are defensively. The Braves need to play more consistently within games if they want to compete with the top teams in Conference AA-I.

Key Stat: Syosset's second leading scorer, Lesse, had 8 points.

Who's Next: The Braves play again Tuesday @ Freeport, 6:15 p.m.