LYNN — This one didn’t have to be as close as it turned out to be.
The Lynn English girls basketball team was coasting along with a 13-point lead with 2:33 left to go in this low-scoring game when the wheels began falling off the wagon for the Bulldogs. They survived, 44-33, at the Paul F. Cavanagh Fieldhouse Thursday, but the Golden Tornadoes made it very uncomfortable.
When Nevaeh Cherilas (game-high 14 points) knocked home a basket with 2:33 to go, that put the Tornadoes within 13 points (40-27). But things didn’t look too dangerous for English, as Malden had experienced trouble scoring from anywhere on the floor all night.
However, that was about to change. The Bulldogs didn’t score again until there were 24 seconds left when co-captain Rosie Chheang (13 points) hit a runner. In between, Malden scored six points and could have scored many more had the Golden Tornado girls been able to hit the bountiful amount of free throws they were awarded.
In fact, Malden missed 10-of-18 free throws over the course of the game, including two on a technical and two more on an intentional foul call. By comparison, English only went to the line once.
Two of English’s starters — Matty Laurino and Jaeleigh Perry — fouled out with substantial time to go in the game, and that was something that, coach Travonne Berry-Rogers said, made a difference.
“We missed our two big kids,” said the first-year coach. “But we didn’t play with the right amount of energy in the second half.
“We played good defense in the first half,” he said. “We forced some turnovers and we made some good shots. But we had to get our footing back after two tough losses last week (back-to-back to St. Mary’s and LynnClassical).”
As the time wore down Wednesday, and looked as if English would survive, Chheang hit her runner to put English up by nine (42-33), and then Makenzie Acevado (six points, along with Laurino and Amara Flores) hit one at the buzzer to account for the final score.
The game got off to a painfully slow start, with English leading 11-4 after a quarter. Chheang and Acevado each had four points during the first eight minutes.
The Bulldogs began the second quarter with an 8-0 run and looked as if they were going to run away and hide. Malden was able to put six points on the board before the quarter ended, but while that was happening, English was keeping pace, and the half ended with English in advantage of a 14-point lead (24-10).
The two sides scored eight apiece to go into the fourth quarter with English leading, 32-18.
The Bulldogs’ high-water mark for a lead was 18 points (38-20) before Malden began chipping away.
English (7-2) hosts Medford Tuesday night (7).
