The Mineola girls varsity basketball team was able to keep the score close against conference rival Island Trees, Friday night, but only as close as Brianna Wilson would let them.
The sophomore Lady Bulldog had a game high 28 points and hit all the big shots in the game to give Island Trees a 53-40 victory on their home court and Mineola their fifth conference loss of the season.
“She did most of her scoring in the first half but we did a better job of guarding her in the second,” Mineola head coach Denise Zunno said of Wilson. “Otherwise we had one too many brainfreezes out there that ultimately cost us the game.”
Some of those brainfreezes included costly turnovers and a number of missed layups throughout the game.
Mineola trailed Island Trees for most of the game but was able to take the lead early in the third quarter off a three ball by Samantha Venus, who had 19 points in the game gave the Lady Mustangs a 26-22 lead.
But Mineola reverted back to form, turning the ball over on multiple possessions and giving up layups on the other end. Island Trees scrambled back out to an 8 point lead and was able to keep Mineola at bay for the duration of the game.
“We actually played them a much tougher game than in our first meeting when they blew us off the court,” Zunno said. “We just need to cut back on the mental errors and keep our focus out there.”
Mineola is now 4-8 (2-5 conference) and will play at Roosevelt next Saturday at 6:30 p.m.
1 2 3 4 F Mineola Lady Mustangs 10 11 9 10 40 Island Trees Lady Bulldogs 13 9 13 18 53