By Michael Letendre
MANCHESTER – The Bristol Eastern girls basketball team made its 2022-23 debut count on Tuesday night, spinning Manchester by a 51-39 final in a CCC Interdivision battle on the road.
The Lancers (1-0) suffocated the Red Hawks defensively from start to finish, holding the home squad to an 11-of-42 shooting performance from the field (26.2-percent) and out-rebounding the program 35-23.
And once the Kingstreeters turned defense into offense, Manchester was never able to catch-up.
Manchester’s Tiara Tyson roped in a game-high 22 points over a solid inside-outside attack but was hounded and harassed by Eastern’s Leah Roy which forced the shooter into some tough misses and eventual turnovers.
“I thought they did a really good job defensively,” said Eastern coach Tony Floyd of his squad. “That girl [Tyson] is a good player. I thought they did a good job at containing her. Leah got herself in a little bit of foul trouble but she did a great job on that kid most of the game. I thought that was the key, keeping her from going crazy. When Leah went out, she kind of went to town.”
Eastern’s Vanessa Drury kicked in 10 points, three rebounds and three assists while Taigan Parent did an excellent job directing traffic, adding seven points, a team-high four assists and two steals while Emily Piendak canned a jumper for her two points.
Eastern’s substitutes did a tremendous job holding down fort when Lauren Ayotte (six points, three rebounds) and Roy (six points, five rebounds, three steals) were in foul trouble.
The pine team scooped in a total of twenty points, nailing a credible 8-of-18 shots from the field.
In her debut game, freshman Autumn Udoh absolutely dominated, attacking the hoop with zest – showing an up-and-under move that former Boston Celtics’ great Kevin McHale would be applauding – and playing sound defensive in the paint.
The 5-foot-11 forward splashed in team-highs of 15 points, 18 rebounds, four blocks and four steals over a tremendous 30-minute stint.
Amanda Noel chipped in three points and two rebounds while Jayle Evins-Mosley added her first scholastic hoop.
“Our bench did a good job,” said Floyd. “I thought Udoh came off the bench and did a great job along with Amanda Noel and Evins-Mosley. That was the key. They showed me some good things tonight and some composure at the end.”
After two charity tosses by Tyson that gave Manchester an early 6-3 edge, the Lancers went on a blazing 26-7 run – making it a 29-13 contest with about two minutes to play before the half. Manchester tallied just 27 points through three completed frames.
“We kept them to thirty-nine points,” said Floyd of Manchester. “That was our goal. If you keep teams under forty points, you’ve got a chance to win the game. And that’s what happened.”
With Ayotte in early foul trouble, Udoh came into the game with 6:36 to play in the first quarter and never left.
Piendak hit her hoop, Udoh scored her first varsity basket on an and-1, Roy found Drury for a huge 3 and when Udoh slipped in her up-and-under field goal, the Lancers led 13-8 through eight minutes.
A Tyson jumper trimmed the deficit to 15-11 with 6:27 remaining before the half before Eastern’s offense went into overdrive.
Udoh started a run with a put-back, Drury canned another three, Parent later drained two free throws and when Roy grabbed a rebound and put the ball in for two points, Eastern held a 16-point edge (29-13) with two minutes remaining on the clock in the second period.
“They were sharing the ball really well,” said Floyd. “At this point of the season, I’m pretty pleased about them running their half-court offense. A couple weeks ago, we couldn’t run a zone offense. This week, they did a really good job executing.”
Eastern led by 12 at the half before a Tyson free throw chopped the deficit to 31-22 with 6:00 left to go in the third tilt.
Ayotte then cashed in on two straight lay-ups and when Udoh put in another miss, the cushion grew to 37-22 as Eastern was cruising into the fourth period.
“Lauren Ayotte made some big plays down in the end, hitting some big shots,” said Floyd.
Early in the fourth frame, Udoh and Evins-Mosley connected on back-to-back hoops that made it a 45-29 contest with 6:23 to go.
Eastern’s offense then dried up for just over four minutes and via an 8-0 jaunt, the Red Hawks were knocking at the door, trailing just 45-37 with 2:15 left to play.
But Manchester never got any closer as Udoh netted her final hoop seconds later, making it a double-figure game again, and when Parent and Roy ended the contest with a perfect 4-for-4 showing from the free throw line, Eastern sealed its 51-39 win against Manchester over a grand debut.
“I’m very pleased about how well these guys stepped it up today,” said Floyd. “We came out here on the road ready to play. I’m happy. I’m going to enjoy this one.”
Bristol Eastern Girls Basketball – CCC Interdivisional action
BRISTOL EASTERN 51, MANCHESTER 39
from Manchester High School
Bristol Eastern (1-0) 13 18 10 10 – 51
Manchester (0-1) 8 11 8 12 – 39
BRISTOL EASTERN (51): Leah Roy 2 2 6, Lauren Ayotte 3 0 6, Emily Piendak 1 0 2, Taigan Parent 1 4 7, Vanessa Drury 4 0 10, Autumn Udoh 6 3 15, Amanda Noel 1 1 3, Jayle Evins-Mosley 1 0 2. Totals: 19 10 51.
MANCHESTER (39): Mia Gilbert 2 0 5, Sania Worrell 1 0 3, Aaliyah Laurence 0 0 0, Elise Ryan 0 6 6, Tiara Tyson 7 8 22, Alayshia Bell 1 1 3. Totals: 11 15 39.
Three-point goals: Parent (BE), Drury (BE) 2, Gilbert (M), Worrell (M).
Records: Bristol Eastern 1-0; Manchester 0-1
