Bishop Loughlin turned to its budding freshman star to carry the team past Mary Louis in a win-or-go-home game in the diocesan semifinals.
Freshman guard Laysha De La Santos had her coming out party in the biggest game of the season for Loughlin. Her career-high 21 points and five 3-pointers powered the Lions to a tough 62–54 win over Mary Louis in the Brooklyn-Queens girls’ basketball semifinals at St. Francis Prep on Feb. 25.
“I felt confident in my shot no matter what, miss or make,” said De La Santos. “My teammates need me to feel confident…I’m not gonna hesitate to shoot.”
Loughlin turned to its freshman star to deliver the biggest shot of the game after a basket by Minnesota-bound guard Jasmine Brunson gave Mary Louis its first lead since the first quarter at 48–47 with just over five minutes remaining,
A 3-pointer from De La Santos on the ensuing possession gave the Lions a 50–48 lead. It sparked a 15–6 run by Loughlin to end the game and give them the runaway victory. The Lions face two-time defending champion Christ the King in the final 6 p.m. Sunday at St. John’s Prep.
De La Santos was not the only player to have a big night for Loughlin, however. Star Milicia “Mimi” Reid recorded her first career triple-double with 12 points, 11 rebounds and 12 assists. Eight of Reid’s 11 points came in the second half.
Lynette Taitt added 12 points for the Lions, while Ellease “Toucan” Billings scored nine, including a clutch pair of free throws with less than a minute remaining that all but put the game away.
It wasn’t all smooth sailing for Loughlin. Although the Lions went into the half leading 28-26, there was a reason for concern in the Loughlin locker room.
Reid, the Lions leading scorer, collided with an official late in the second quarter and was forced to sit the rest of the half. Although she would return after the break, she appeared to be fighting some pain on the court.
“I’m not going to lie, it was hurting,” Reid said. “I just didn’t want to…show that it hurts because then my teammates see that and they feed off of that.”
Reid returned during an exciting third quarter that featured five ties and a pair of lead changes. Mary Louis was able to take its first lead since the game’s opening moments at 39–37, however Loughlin fought back and took a 45–44 lead into the final frame.
While Brunson and Danielle Patterson were able to have their way all night against the Loughlin defense, the Lions made sure that the TMLA supporting cast was not a factor.
The pair combined for 47 points, with Brunson scoring a game-high 28 and Patterson adding 19, however the rest of the Hilltoppers scored only seven points combined and did not record a field goal in the second half.
“Defense is my game plan all the time,” said Loughlin coach Chez Williams. “It doesn’t matter how much you can score, if you can play D you always give yourself a chance to win.”
It wasn’t all positive for Brooklyn teams in the diocesan semifinals Nazareth was handled in the nightcap and suffered a 69-43 loss against Christ the King.
Nazareth was overmatched from the start against the powerful Royals. They fell behind 12-0 to start the game and trailed 35-13 at the half. Christ the King led by as many as 34 in the second half. Jasmine Murray paced Nazareth with 12 points and Erykah Russell added seven.
The Lady Kingsmen’s season is not yet however. Despite the loss, Nazareth, which placed fifth, will play sixth-place St. Francis Prep to decide the dioceses’ representative in the Catholic Class A state tournament.
