MIAA D2 Tourney: Cooped Up

Number 3 Oliver Ames advances to the MIAA D2 Final 4 after an 84-64 home win against #6 Dracut. Both teams came out on fire offensively and put on a crazy shooting performance from the outside leading to a 42-32 halftime lead for Oliver Ames. A big third quarter on defense resulted in the 10 point Oliver Ames lead increasing to 17 heading into the 4th. OA has a legitimate chance of winning the D2 title with its size, length, and shooting ability.   Player of the Game: <img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-399819" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/03/93E1E22D-20B7-496E-977F-5E7DE0F27429-scaled-crop-1916x1258-1647107665-300x197.jpeg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /> [player_tooltip player_id="269263" first="Jasmyn" last="Cooper"] - 6’1’’ - PF - ’24 Cooper impacted the game in multiple ways to help Oliver Ames advance to the next round. She had a team-high 23 points and owned the paint. Her size and strength gave her a huge advantage, and she was able to feast on the offensive boards. The most significant adjustment of the night happened late in the second quarter, where Cooper switched onto electric scoring Dracut point guard [player_tooltip player_id="267178" first="Ashlee" last="Talbot"]. Talbot was unstoppable at the beginning of the game, but Cooper defending her slowed the Dracut offense down just enough for Oliver Ames to pull away and be in full control of the game. Cooper showing the ability to defend forwards and point guards immediately increases her stock and makes her more valuable than other players at her position.   Oliver Ames Standouts: [player_tooltip player_id="300858" first="Sarah" last="Hilliard"] - 6’0’’ - PF - ’24 Hilliard is one of the many long, athletic Oliver Ames forwards who had a sneaky big game against Dracut. She scored 15 points, and Dracut had a. Hard time locating her in transition because she does such a good job rim running and getting behind the defense. Hilliard is a good passer and can hit outside shots. She is the x-factor for Oliver Ames, and when she is producing the way she was tonight, they become a more difficult team to stop.   [player_tooltip player_id="263819" first="Caroline" last="Peper"] - 6’0’’ - SG - ’22 Peper kicked off the game with a long-range three, which has been her bread and butter her whole high school career. She could get her shot off easily in this game because of her length and size advantage. Peper also had 23 points and did most of her damage from the perimeter. She hit 4 threes and had a couple of nice mid-range shots off the bounce. Peper also was the primary playmaker in the halfcourt and did a good job facilitating the OA offense.   [player_tooltip player_id="270376" first="Kaydance" last="Derba"] - ’5’11’’ - SG - ’24 Derba showed her elite shooting ability by cashing in 3 long-range shots. Besides the shooting, I thought Derba was moving the ball well on offense and was a good playmaker in the halfcourt. She is constantly moving on offense and has a good feel for the game. Defensively, Derba was solid as well. Her length helped get deflections, and she made it hard for Dracut to execute in the halfcourt due to her activity. Dracut Standouts: [player_tooltip player_id="267178" first="Ashlee" last="Talbot"] - 5’6’’ - PG - ’23 Even though the game ended in a loss Talbot’s performance was easily the most impressive of the night. She finished with 40 points and 7 three-pointers and did everything she could to try to get Dracut into the Final 4. It is hard to have major individual scoring performances against a sound defensive team like Oliver Ames, but Talbot found a way to be effective against them. Her shooting was unreal. The number of off-the-dribble jump shots, specifically from behind the arc, was as big time as it gets. Oliver Ames had trouble handling her quick first step and crafty ball-handling and ended up having to put [player_tooltip player_id="269263" first="Jasmyn" last="Cooper"] on her and load up the paint with help defenders to keep Talbot out the paint. For Talbot to score 40 points at her size against Oliver Ames’ trees shows how talented and skilled she is and that she is one of the hardest competitors around.   [player_tooltip player_id="267155" first="Brodie" last="Gannon"] - 5’8’’ - SG - ’23 Every time I watch Gannon play, she spreads the floor with her three-point shooting and plays good defense. It is hard not to like a player who has a defined role that translates to winning basketball consistently night in and night out. She had 9 points (3 threes), dug in defensively, and was trying to make plays. Gannon competes hard and is a tough player, which never goes unnoticed.   [player_tooltip player_id="399824" first="Lamees" last="Alasaad"] - 5’4’’ - CG - ’24 Alasaad was outworking everyone on the court and gave Dracut good minutes and energy off the bench. She didn’t hit a field goal all game but forced many turnovers in the backcourt to help Dracut get extra possessions. I like Alasaad’s motor and how scrappy she was on the defensive side of the ball.