Takeaways From Patriot vs. Brooke Point Early Season Battle

59-50 was the final score in Thursday night's battle between The Patriot Pioneers and the Brooke Point Black Hawks. Patriot came out swinging, dominating on defense forcing 10 turnovers in the first half. Sophomore Elena Bertand of Patriot was the hot hand in the first half grabbing two steals and had a nice and-one play early in the first quarter. Patriot was able to take advantage of bad ball control all night by Brooke Point and was very successful running half court press in the first half. Although it was only a six point margin by halftime, Patriot left major points on the board after goin 2-8 from the free throw line in the last 40 seconds. Third quarter action was in Brooke Point's favor as senior Guard #32 <a href="https://prepgirlshoops.com/player/zamaria-hutchinson/">Zamaria Hutchinson</a> and sophomore Forward #22 Jaylyn Pressley started taking over. The two fed off each others energy and Jaylyn found herself at the free throw line a lot throughout the second half after multiple put back attempts. The Black Hawks would cut the game back down to one by the end of the third quarter but it didn't take long for the Pioneers to regain momentum. Patriot got off to a 10 point lead early in the fourth quarter after Elena Bertand knocked down a big 3 pointer. The final 3 minutes was an up and down defensive battle, with the lead consistently fluctuating between 6 and 10 points . Brooke Point looked as if they were going to close the deficit after multiple defensive rebounds off missed shots late in the third, but similar to Patriot's performance in the first half, Brooke Point would too go 2-8 from the line in the last few minutes of play. Pioneers would go on to serve Brooke Point its first lost of the season. On to The Best...... [caption id="attachment_121441" align="alignright" width="137"] Elena Bertrand, Patriot [/caption] MVP: Elena Bertand (Patriot) 2022 Elena Bertand played at a high level both sides of the floor last night. Patriot had a 17-8 lead at the end of the first quarter and that was largely due to Elena's defense and assist off turnovers. By the fourth quarter, Elena seemed to hit a second wind and once again take control, coming up with 2 steals and hitting a big 3 pointer early in the fourth. Elena finished the game with 13 points, 3 assist, and 4 steals. The sophomore player has owned her role on this team and will be the catalyst to their success going forward. Best Offensive Performance: Lauren Moore (Patriot) 2021 Lauren Moore quietly dropped 18 points and had 12 rebounds, five rebounds being offensive in which she scored 6 points off of. She also went 1 for 2 from the three point line, cashing in a baseline jumper to put her team up by 10 in the fourth quarter. Best Defensive Performance: Elena Bertand (Patriot) 2022 Elena Bertand and junior Guard Caitlin Blackman led the Black Hawks in steals with four each, but it is Elena's three assist that make me give her this award. Elena had some big steals that led directly to fast breaks to help sustain the lead against Brooke Point. Best Play: Zamaria Hutchinson (Brooke Point) 2020 Late in the fourth quarter, Brooke Point cut the lead down to six points thanks to two great plays by Zamaria Hutchinson. Hutchinson dove for a loose ball, forcing a turnover. She then received the following inbound pass, driving to the lane for a lay-up, forcing the foul on the play. And 1!! Best intangibles: Jaylyn Pressley (Brooke Point) 2022 Pressley was dominate in the paint and there's no denying her knack for getting to the ball. At 6'0, the forward knows when to turn around and take the shot, when to kick it out, and when and how to draw the foul. Pressley has big play ability and with that, drew the foul on the majority of her shots. The sophomore did miss a number of free throws during the game but this is something we expect her to improve on as the season continues. Best Under the Radar Performance: Zamaria Hutchinson (Brooke Point) 2020 Zamaria was the life line for the Black Hawks offense tonight. Turnovers ultimately led to their lost but Zamaria came up with multiple big drives to the basket to keep it a tooth and nail match. Brooke Point never took full control of this game, but when surges were needed, specifically at the end of the 2nd quarter, Zamaria was the driving force. Best Stock Riser: Caitlin Blackman (Patriot) 2021 Caitlin took a number of shots this game but they were all calculated. Caitlin is very good at coming off the screen, looking for the best shot or pass possible. She is not afraid to pull the trigger and her teammates encourage her. Caitlin had 17 points in this one and shared the wealth on defense, racking up 4 steals. She's doing what she does year end and year out, but her stat sheet could be even fatter this year. Best Underclassman: Elena Bertrand (Patriot) 2022 The sophomore dropped 13 points Thursday and 19 in Wednesday's season opener. Elena looks like she's already ready to take on a leadership role for these Pioneers. These last two performances were very impressive and it looks like Elena is picking up right where she left off last season. Elena averaged 13 ppg, 3 rebounds per game, and 2.7 steals per game her freshman year with Patriot.