The girls’ basketball team needed a test.

After winning their first six games of the season by an average margin of 48.5 points, they wanted a team that could push them and ask them to raise their game. They found that foil in Mattituck in last night’s non-league Holiday Hoops match-up in Swanson.

The game started with a handful of empty possessions for both teams before Jocelyn McCrain stole the ball, dribbled up-court, and finished a tough lefty layup through contact for an and-1 that gave The Brook a 3-0 lead. Mattituck tied it on the next possession with a 3-pointer, but the Bears scored the next eight points to prompt a Tucker timeout. Cassandra Rohan, who yesterday made Newsday‘s Top 100 list, began the run by rebounding a Mattituck free throw attempt and driving coast-to-coast for as impressive a play as you’ll see from a forward.

Meaghan Doherty, who joined Rohan on the Top 100 list, connected on a jumper before hitting a pair of free throws to give the Bears a 9-3 edge. McCrain followed with a steal before threading a beautiful lob pass to a streaking Abby Smith for an 11-3 lead. The Bear lead reached as many as nine points following a Payton Martin long jumper that nudged their advantage out to 13-4, but Mattituck answered with another trifecta. In the waning seconds, Rohan extended the margin to 15-7 to give The Brook an eight-point lead after one.

The second quarter was a pivotal point in the game where the Bears came close to gaining a comfortable cushion before letting the Tuckers back into the game. Mattituck scored to open the frame, but Smith grabbed an offensive rebound and hit a floater to answer. Mattituck connected on a 3-pointer to pull within 12-17, but McCrain responded with a three of her own before Rohan scored a tough layup to give the Bears their largest lead of the game at 22-12. At a moment when The Brook looked poised to seize control, the Tuckers responded with consecutive 3-pointers to close the half with a jolt of momentum and trail just 18-22 at the break.

The Bears wanted a challenge, and as the second half opened, one reared its head. Within the first minute of the third, Smith picked up her fourth foul, sidelining our point guard for most of the quarter, and Mattituck scored consecutive buckets to tie the game at 22-22. The layups were part of an 8-0 run that gave the visitors a 26-22 edge early in the period. Doherty answered at a critical moment with her first 3-pointer of the game to pull the Bears back within one. Mattituck scored the next four points to build their biggest lead of the evening at 30-25. Doherty and Mattituck traded layups to keep the margin at five, but the Bears scored the final six points of the quarter to storm back and take a narrow 33-32 lead into the fourth. McCrain began the spurt with a drive and a tough layup. Rohan followed with a putback, and Smith, who returned to action with her fourth foul, stole the ball and fed Doherty for a fastbreak layup.

The Bears had risen to meet the challenge presented by Mattituck, but as the Tuckers sank their sixth 3-pointer to open the fourth, it was clear our girls still had work to do. Rohan began by dropping in a layup following a great feed from Smith to tie the game at 35-35 and instigate an 18-7 game-closing run. Another heady pass, this time on a lob from Doherty, fed Rohan for a score that would give the Bears the lead for good. Doherty followed with a deep 3-pointer, and Smith connected on a free throw to give the Blue & White a 41-35 advantage. Following a fastbreak layup from Mattituck that pulled them within four, Smith hit a baseline floater, Doherty drove and hit a teardrop, and McCrain cashed a free throw to push the Bear lead to 46-37.

Just when it felt like the Bears were ready to finish off the Tuckers, the visitors hit their seventh 3-pointer of the night to pull back within six, but they would rise to the final challenge and vanquish it. With 1:41 left, Martin splashed a corner 3-pointer to give The Brook a 49-40 lead on the way to a 51-42 win.

The Bears showed impressive resilience tonight after going untested over the first 3 weeks of the season. Shots weren’t falling early, Mattituck’s zone was causing turnovers, Smith had four early fouls, and they trailed in the fourth. But when time was tight and winning plays had to be made, every Bear stepped up. Smith played excellent defense and controlled the offense, playing the entire fourth quarter with four fouls. Doherty was mentally tough, making numerous key plays down the stretch after a cold shooting start. Rohan faced double teams all night, scored consecutive baskets to give the Bears the lead for good, and controlled the boards. McCrain made several fourth-quarter steals and made all the right decisions to manage the game clock in the closing minutes. Martin’s 3-pointer extinguished the Tuckers for good. It felt like a win the Bears will draw confidence from over the rest of the season.

Doherty led The Brook with 18 points. Rohan (12), McCrain (8), Smith (7), and Martin (5) gave the Bears tremendous balance offensively. With the win, the Bears improve to 7-0, their best start in program history.

The Blue & White are back in action on Saturday morning in a non-league match-up with Smithtown Christian, who the Bears topped last December, 44-35.

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