NTL GIRLS' BASKETBALL: BIG THIRD QUARTER ALLOWS NEB TO PULL AWAY FROM NP-MANSFIELD (2021-01-21)

BY CHRIS MANNING
Northern Tier Sports Report
ROME — On paper it looked like Northeast Bradford’s game on Thursday against NP-Mansfield should have been easy.

But the first half was anything but for the Panthers as the Tigers gave them all they could handle. However, NEB righted their ship in a big way in the third quarter, outscoring NPM 29-4 coming out of halftime to pull away for a 60-29 win in NTL girls’ basketball action Thursday.

“It was a good win for us as a team,” said NEB’s Maisie Neuber. “We knew it was going to be tough coming in. Mansfield had a couple tough losses this week, and we knew they were going to be coming back to try to beat us.”

The Tigers led 10-7 after the first quarter as NEB struggled to get the ball through the hoop. They took a lead in the second but couldn’t quite detach themselves from NPM throughout the first half.

“We did come out kind of flat,” said Neuber. 

However, they didn’t panic as their coach Ben Beebe assured things would turn around.

“Coach kind of told us ‘our shots will fall, we just have to keep doing what we’re doing, keep playing good defense, keep pressuring the ball,’ and that ended up paying off for us,” Neuber said.

The dam broke in the third as the Panthers got fast break after fast break to eventually pull away.

“We were able to pressure the ball in our press,” Neuber explained. “We we’re doing a pretty good job in trapping, and that really helped us take the lead in the third quarter.”

Neuber finished with 21 points, eight boards and three steals while Kayleigh Thoman had 14 points and four steals. Lauryn Jones added 10 points, five boards, five steals and two blocks as Alena Beebe chipped in with nine points.

Kate O’Connor came away with four points to go with 10 rebounds while Julie Brown netted two points.

Sarah Spohn led NPM with seven points, which had eight different players score in the game. Elizabeth Kahl, Jolyn Farrell, Ella Farrer and Ashley Brubaker had four points each.

Payten Chapel finished with three points, Shaniya Sparrow netted two and Grace Farrer scored one.

Thoman gave NEB a 2-0 lead to start the game but NPM scored the next two buckets by Brubaker and Sparrow. 

A Neuber 3-ball put the Panthers back up 5-4 halfway through the first quarter but the Tigers regained the lead on two free throws from Kahl. 

A Spohn lay-up made it 8-5 NPM with both teams trading buckets down the stretch.

NEB opened the second quarter with back to back buckets from Thoman and O’Connor to take the lead, 11-10.

NPM’s Ella Farrer gave them the lead back with a driving lay-up, but a Thoman bucket off a Neuber assist put the Panthers up 13-12 with 5:40 left in the second quarter. 

They wouldn’t lose the lead after that.

Neuber and Beebe then had back to back baskets to put the Panthers up 17-12 before a Spohn lay-up cut it back to a one possession game.

Two more baskets for NEB - lay-ups by O’Connor and Thoman - gave them some breathing room 21-14.

After a pair of missed free throws from the Tigers NEB continued with the strong offensive attack in transition, led by Neuber.

On a fast break she found Beebe for a lay-up, then followed that up with a full court driving lay-up of her own to give the Panthers a 25-14 lead.

Brubaker hit two free throws just before the half to make it a 9-point deficit for the Tigers at the midway point.

An Ella Farrer basket coming out of the break cut it to 25-18 for NPM, but from that point on it was all NEB.

The Panthers went on to score 27 straight points, usually fast break lay-ups off turnovers or rebounds, to take control of the game. They also found the range from deep, hitting three 3-pointers, two of them by Jones.

A Neuber lay-up at the end of the third quarter put the Panthers up 54-20 and effectively ended the competition.

NEB improves to 5-2 on the year, and retakes the top spot in the Division-II standings with Canton losing to Troy. NPM falls to 0-3.

The Panthers will look to stay on top of the Small School standings as they travel to Wellsboro next Wednesday.

CUTLINE: NEB’s Lauryn Jones goes up for a jumper against NP-Mansfield Thursday…PHOTOS BY CHRIS MANNING.