Melrose Lady Raiders Basketball

Shey Peddy has been voted A-10 Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the year. She has also graduated from Temple University.

Melrose journeyed to Salem, to meet a relatively young and inexperienced Salem team, but left disappointed after a 37-32 loss.

Melrose came out quickly with nine early, unanswered points, a pair of layups by Sydney Doherty, one from Brooke Bell, and a trey from Lia Limone. But the more athletic and quicker Lady Raiders were content to play half-court basketball and Salem gradually fought their way back into the game. After one Salem trailed 9-4, and Melrose maintained a 17-12 halftime lead thanks to a ten point effort from Lia.

But the train went off the tracks, with Melrose scoring only eight points in the next thirteen minutes, and Salem took advantage of Melrose fouls and heated up from outside to outscore Melrose 25-15 in the second half to win.

Melrose never quit, tying the score at 32 with about a minute to go on a Bell three pointer off the inbounds, but Salem executed with an elbow jumper and late free throws to win, and faces Middlesex League champion Friday.

Melrose looks to restore its postseason brand tonight, with a matchup at Salem. The Lady Raiders, to the best of recollection, have not faced Salem since 2003 at the Tsongas Arena.

Basketball can be as simple or complex as one chooses to make it. Successful offensive teams have quality possessions, take care of the ball, and take good shots. A contested shot or a shot by a non-shooter away from the basket is usually not considered a high percentage shot.

Successful defense takes away easy shots with superior team defense in transition and defensive rebounding, with communication and help. Good defenses force mistakes and work to allow at most one bad shot.

Good process generally produces good outcome. See you there.

Shey Peddy named US Women's Basketball Writers National Player of the Week from Temple.

Meg Kirwan named GNAC Player of the Year at Emmanuel.

Melrose (10-10) travels to Salem Tuesday to face the Witches. The season proved to be a roller coaster, with a 1-4 start, an 8-1 run, and a 1-5 finish, with a St. Mary's tournament win over Gloucester restoring post-season aspirations.

The Salem News gives their take on Salem.

Melrose looks to restore its brand after struggles in 2010-11.

Melrose defeated Wilmington (split), Gloucester, and Tewksbury during the season, with their best quality win over Wilmington.

To be successful, Melrose must limit easy baskets (transition, defensive rebounding), take care of the basketball and reduce turnovers, and make good decisions dictated by score, situation, and time.

We talk with our young players about playing basketball possession by possession. The best players embrace that.

Here's the poetry lesson.

The players who take quality shots, take care of the ball, block out, help their teammates by getting open, those who communicate on defense, set screens, and deny cuts to the ball understand the poem's true meaning.

Massachusetts Basketball Hall of Fame coach and former Melrose AD Sonny Lane had a saying, "it's not who starts that counts, it's who finishes."

Melrose tuned up for the post-season with a 46-42 overtime defeat to North Andover in the finals of the St. Mary's Tournament. Melrose finishes 10-10 and North Andover finishes 13-7.

North Andover took a quick 4-0 lead before Melrose responded, only to see the Knights lead 12-8 after one thanks to a pair of treys by Morgan Lumb (31 points).

Melrose closed the first half trailing 20-19 with five points apiece from Jill Slabacheski and Sydney Doherty.

The second half began slowly for Melrose as North Andover opened up an eight point lead before Melrose closed to within three at 29-26.

The teams traded leads in the fourth, with Melrose trailing by one after Lumb nailed another three pointer. Brooke Bell was fouled with 1.1 seconds left. Brooke converted the first, but back-rimmed the second to send the game into OT.

It was all Lumb in OT as she fired in a three and a deuce quickly, and although Melrose closed to within a hoop late, North Andover (Lumb again) sank a pair of free throws to ice the win.

Kayla Wyland, with ten second half points led Melrose and Brooke and Sydney each added seven points.

A player and her team start each season, each game as an empty vessel. The best players have transformational power, as through their automatic actions (help defense, communication, blocking out, setting screens, finding open players, taking care of the ball, using quality shot selection) they fill up their team and teammates' glasses.

These magisterial actions define the selfless player in an almost magical experience when done correctly. Relatively few players fully grasp the impact of truly team play, that elevates everyone around them. Teams who can develop enough of these players project what Taoists call chi or qi.

The magic appears as the player who fills the team's cup, finds her own overflowing. Magical, indeed.

Melrose has a checkered history against Gloucester, but made the plays today  with a 55-44 win in the semifinals of the St. Mary's Tournament. The win brings the Lady Raiders to 10-9 and returns Melrose to post-season play.

Melrose took the lead after one period 15-13, led by Lia Limone's eight points including a pair of threes. Melrose extended its advantage with a 19-7 second stanza, with Shannon Lahiff (6) and Kayla Wyland (5) combining for eleven points.

Melrose played steady defense and kept Gloucester at bay, maintaining their lead 43-29 after three and sealing the victory with a twelve-point fourth.

Lia Limone led with a dozen points, Jenny McGee added eleven, and Brooke Bell eight, including five in the fourth.

Game notes: Melrose broke a four game winning losing streak with intensity and better shooting. The Lady Raiders tossed in a quintet of treys, shot (unofficially*) 15 of 20 from the stripe, and kept the turnovers down with sixteen.

The tournament is officiated with three referees, which is good preparation for the postseason. Melrose is reportedly going to be playing in the finals at 4:00 tomorrow, with their opponent to be the winner of North Andover-Tewksbury, most likely North Andover.

*Statistics courtesy of Dick Collis.

Bobby Knight is poorly understood. His biography "Knight" by Bob Hammel clarifies a lot. The meatiest basketball comes from Chapter II, "Cornerstones and Credos".

Here is part of the chapter, verbatim.

"Basketball is not a game of great plays and great shooting, it's a game of mistakes and errors. If you ever see a state championship game, you'll see mistakes and errors made, and the team that makes the most of them will be the team that gets beat, almost without exception." At that point in my life, a state championship game meant basketball being played by the very best teams. But I've watched every level of basketball there is and Ash's point is absolutely right. It's a game of not making mistakes. The more you cut down on mistakes, the better your chance of winning is - in basketball or in any other sport, and in just about anything in life. (my italics and emphasis)


On offense, your players don't take bad shots. They don't throw the ball away. They move without the ball. They help each other get open. 


On defense, your teams don't give up easy points on conversion, on fast breaks. They don't commit bad fouls- unnecessary or dumb fouls that keep the other team on the free throw line. Your guys never foul a guy who is in the act of taking a bad shot or a three-point shot. And they have to control the lane, and know where the ball is at all times. 

What Knight reminds us with great clarity is that coaches (leaders) who have enough talent and can get these messages through will succeed. But he also reminds us that doing the right thing matters...getting the right people in the right job doing their job consistently well.

Melrose had its fourth chance to clinch a post-season berth and fell 47-44 at Watertown.

Melrose led for three quarters, up 13-11, 19-16, and 29-23 at breaks. A strong first half by Sydney Doherty (10 of her 13 points) propelled the Lady Raiders to the lead.

But Watertown's Coppola sisters rained down threes on Melrose in the fourth, scoring 24 points to drop Melrose to 9-9 with a pair of games remaining.

Melrose struggled at the free throw line, shooting 9 for 25 (36%) including 4 for 11 in the critical fourth period, derailing a chance to break their losing streak which now extends to four games.

Brooke Bell led with fifteen points, followed by thirteen for Sydney, and eight for Kayla Wyland.

The St. Mary's tournament remains and Melrose needs to find some magic in Lynn to find a spot in the post-season.

The third time wasn't the charm as the Lady Raiders fell to 9-8 with a tough 55-50 home loss to neighboring Stoneham. The Franklin Street Spartans did enough to win and they qualified for post-season play with their tenth win.

Melrose was simply playing uphill all night, trailing 14-10 after one, and 22-15 at the half.

After shooting four for their first eight, Melrose went ice cold making only one of their next twenty-two shots including one for eighteen in period two.

A second half thirty-five point outburst couldn't compensate, and Melrose couldn't keep Stoneham out of the lane as Parker and Gallahue took advantage of their position and mobility to do Melrose in.

Jenny McGee had ten points and Kayla Wyland, Brooke Bell, and Sydney Doherty each added nine.

Game analysis: Sometimes the ball doesn't go in. Pure shooting ability covers up a multitude of sins in basketball, and shooting is the fundamental core skill (shooting, passing, dribbling, rebounding, cutting, pivoting) that is least well taught. Statistical analysis in sports got dramatized in Micheal Lewis' "Moneyball", about baseball. A famous Billy Beane quote about his player analysis team was "If he's such a good hitter, then why doesn't he hit better."

The ball didn't drop for the Lady Raiders and they travel to Watertown Friday for another opportunity to clinch a post-season spot.

Melrose has a rich tradition of success in girls basketball, success born of playing quality basketball. Quality basketball in large part meant consistent man-to-man defense supplemented by offense built off transition basketball, often turning steals, deflections, and turnovers into points.

Nothing carries more self-destructive power than doubt, questioning your self-worth, your ability, and your potential. Nobody has the right to take that from a person. All players miss shots and make mistakes; great players make bad plays and bad decisions...but they do it less often than lesser players.

Sometimes, players need nothing more than a reinfusion of confidence to regain the intangibles that supplement the tangible skill, athleticism, and teamwork.

But teamwork is born from self-awareness of strengths and limitations, and  the ability to share that with teammates. Success requires many elements, but among the most important are confidence, composure, and compassion.

Coach Dick Bennett gave his players laminated sheets emphasizing five requirements for successful players:

Passion - a love for the game
Unity - teamwork; the team is the star of the team
Selflessness - you must be able to put others before yourself
Humility - confidence without self-aggrandizement
Thankfulness - appreciation for all that you have received

Teams with a successful process achieve up to their potential, disabuse doubt, overcoming internal or external obstacles, and deny excessive credit to opposition. They simply do whatever it takes to reach their goals.

Inspiration is a stimulus to achievement. Whether using self-reinforcing statements or imagery, winners find a way.

Melrose faced Wilmington for a chance to get a possible share of the ML small lead. When the dust settled, Wilmington (15-2) removed all doubt with a 52-38 win over the Lady Raiders (9-7).

Wilmington took the lead early with a 15-8 first quarter edge and led 26-16 at halftime. Melrose's scoring drought continued, with Brooke Bell with five of her nine points the leader.

Melrose trailed by twelve after three, with only a pair of hoops in the third period, along with five free throws. Jenny McGee had three points in the quarter.

Wilmington iced the game with a fifteen point fourth quarter, and Melrose got balanced but limited scoring.

Game analysis: Wilmington proved its ML Small Division superiority and Melrose continues to look for another win to secure postseason qualifying. 10 for 22 free throw shooting didn't cost Melrose the game, but it didn't make it easier either. Although nine Lady Raiders scored, overall the offense needs more dynamic play to get back in the victory column.

Melrose had a chance to secure a post-season berth with a win at Wakefield. The Warriors picked up their first Middlesex League Small Division win, dominating Melrose 50-38.

Nothing really went well for Melrose. Wakefield got out to a 10-2 lead early, Brooke Bell picked up a pair of quick fouls, and Melrose's defense proved porous as Wakefield buried open shots and scored in transition.

Melrose trailed at every quarter, 14-6, 26-18, and 38-27, and never really threatened Wakefield.

The Lady Raiders didn't score a field goal in the first, hanging around with 6-8 free throws, and scored only four first half buckets.

Lia Limone led Melrose (unofficially) with fifteen points.

Game analysis: Wakefield won offensively, defensively, on the glass, in transition, and according to Wakefield AD Mike Boyages, played their best basketball of the season.

Melrose came in tied with Wilmington for the lead in the Middlesex Small division and departed with a 41-27 win over visiting Burlington. Melrose has now won eight of its last nine games and moves to 9-5.

Melrose won the game on the defensive end. Shutdown defender Brooke Bell stymied the Burlington guards and Melrose grabbed a 10-2 lead that they never relinquished. Melrose had only one first period turnover along the way.

The Lady Raiders expanded the lead along the way, outscoring the Red Devils 11-8 in period two, with Lia Limone leading the scoring at halftime thanks to a pair of threes. Sophomore Jill MacInnes had a spectacular three minutes, with four points, one rebound, one steal, one assist, and a forced turnover. She did everything except take tickets.

The third period saw Melrose scuffle in the half-court offense, with only two hoops and periods with poor flow. At the end of three, Melrose led 28-21.

Burlington pulled within six early in the fourth, but Melrose threw away the conservative game plan and was able to put up thirteen points with some drives and better cutting and passing. A thirteen point final frame iced the win. Brooke Bell finished with thirteen points, Jenny McGee added eleven, and Lia Limone ten.

Game analysis: at times the Lady Raiders seemed conflicted, unsure whether to press transition or settle for the half-court game. In the set offense, they didn't consistently generate high probability scoring opportunities, but their defense kept them in front. Good free throw shooting (10-14) also helped them to get within a game of qualifying for post-season action, headed into games at Wakefield and Wilmington next week.