H.S. GIRLS
MLK 59
Canarsie 46
When Will Rodriguez’ Martin Luther King team lost to undefeated powerhouse Bergtraum by 36 in the Manhattan Borough Championship last month, the coach worried about how his team would react.
“I don’t know if we’re going to be able to recover from this for the playoffs,” Rodriguez said at the time. “It’s not going to be easy.”
Yesterday, after the fifth-seeded Lady Knights knocked off No. 12 Canarsie, 59-46, at the College of Staten Island in the second round of the PSAL playoffs, Rodriguez was slightly more optimistic.
“We’re getting back to where we need to be,” Rodriguez said after the team advanced to meet fourth-seeded Midwood, which beat No. 13 Manhattan Center 39-26. “But it’s been a slow crawl.”
The key to any hopes MLK (21-6) may have to enact some revenge against seemingly unstoppable Bergtraum in the semifinals is 6-footer Jennifer Brown, who had 20 points and 15 rebounds in yesterday’s victory.
“We kind of went into the Bergtraum game with nothing to lose,” said the Pittsburgh-bound senior, who led the PSAL in scoring with nearly 35 ppg. “But we didn’t expect to get smacked like that. We were heartbroken and embarrassed. We’re never going to let that happen again.”
For much of the first half yesterday, it didn’t look like the Knights would even get to the quarterfinals. Canarsie, which ended its season at 15-13, led by six at the half before MLK opened the third quarter on a 10-0 run and never trailed again.
Canarsie’s chances virtually ended near the end of the third quarter when center Whitney Hollis went down with a right knee injury, feared to be a dislocated patella.
“That was my time to explode,” said Brown. “I know a lot is expected of me and I want that pressure on me.”
But she remained unsatisfied.
“There is a lot me and my teammates can learn from this game because we need to play better if we want to beat Bergtraum,” Brown said.
*
Midwood was led by Sarah Milburn, who had 12 points, as the Hornets held Manhattan Center to two points in the third quarter.