Saugus Not So Lonely at Top

One possession was all Coach Eric Olsson of Saugus High needed to see to know his team was in for a long night.

Two missed layups, two five-foot jumpers off the front of the rim and an air ball on a hook shot in the lane were examples of the missed opportunities that would plague the Centurions. Hart posted a 50-39 girls’ basketball victory Tuesday night and continued a pattern that has become familiar in the Foothill League the last two seasons.

“For some reason, we don’t match up well against them,” Olsson said after watching his team lose to Hart for the third consecutive time. “Give them the credit, they know how to prepare against us and they hit the shots they needed to win.”

The Centurions had their eight-game winning streak snapped, creating a three-way tie atop the league standings.

Hart, Saugus and Valencia, which Saugus beat Friday, are 4-1 heading into the second round.

Saugus has it tough the rest of the way. Because of a scheduling quirk, all five of its games are on the road.

“This is the toughest our league has been since I’ve been here,” said Coach Dave Munroe of Hart, whose team won nine of 10 titles in the 1990s and seven in a row until Valencia won last year.

“So far things are shaping up just like last season, when we beat Saugus twice, they beat Valencia twice and Valencia beat us twice. “

Saugus, which has never finished higher than third place in the school’s 23-year history, trailed, 22-16, at halftime and was outscored, 19-7, in the third quarter.

“We lost the game in the third quarter,” Saugus forward Jessi Loring said. “We were really intimidated by them. They were just the better team.”

Amanda Patton had 13 points for the Indians (15-4) and freshman Brandi Kimble added 10, including three consecutive baskets that extended Hart’s lead to 32-18 midway through the third quarter.

“We looked at this as a must-win game even though it really wasn’t,” said Kimble, a 5-8 guard. “Saugus is hard to play because their post players are dominant. Once they have the ball down low, you can’t really stop them. But our shots were going down in the second half and we picked it up defensively.”

Ann Marie Summerhays had 10 points for the Centurions (17-3).

“We average 58 points a game and we only gave up 50, so if we played our normal game offensively, we would’ve won,” Olsson said.

“But we missed way to many easy layups and we were too tentative underneath the basket. Now, we’re going to have to win on the road to win league.”