First Half 3-Point Barrage Leads Women’s Basketball Past Holyoke, 90-44

BROCKTON, Mass. ---- The Massasoit women's basketball buried 10 first half 3-pointers, 12 for the game, and shot 60 percent from the floor to best Holyoke CC, 90-44, at the Asiaf Field House on Saturday.

Massasoit (2-3) seemingly could not miss in the opening stanza, holding a dominant 60-13 lead at the break. In the second quarter, the Warriors netted 33 points to just five by Holyoke.

Natascha Elias, Tatiana Dias and Geornaisha Silva-Moore, all from Brockton, combined for 52 points in the first half, including 10 shots from downtown.

"We came out hot again shooting the basketball," head coach Taryn Johnson said. "Our offensive game is really coming together. We still need to tighten some things up on defense, but overall it was another quality win for us."

After the break, Massasoit cooled off a bit as HCC outscored the Warriors, 24-12 in the third quarter.

However, the massive lead was far too much for the Cougars to overcome, as Massasoit closed out the fourth quarter on a 18-7 run.

Elias continued to aim with her sniper-like accuracy from 3-point range, knocking down six treys en route to a game-high 26 points. She shot a blistering 10 of 14 from the field, 6-of-9 from 3-point range and added nine rebounds and three assists.

Dias was next in the scoring department, netting 21 points, while Silva-Moore finished with 19 points, eight rebounds and six assists in the victory.

Also reaching double figures was Cynthia Laing (Boston) who finished with a career-high 16 points, 10 coming in the second half.

Liv Curtin (Abington) came off the bench to chip in four points and eight rebounds, while Deja Houston (Taunton) and Gabby Boutin (Middleboro) also scored for the Warriors.

Massasoit went 12 for 25 from downtown (48 percent), marking the Warriors second straight game with 12 made 3-point baskets.

"The 3-point shot is not luck anymore for us, it is definitely part of our game," Johnson said. "When our girls are open, they can make them. (Holyoke) started to take away the 3 in the second half, they adjusted, that's when we started to make the extra pass and got some easy looks inside. We also got more people involved in the second half, like Cynthia Laing, Liv Curtin and Deja (Houston).

"It was great to see everyone contribute both offensively and defensively in a team win."

Holyoke was led offensively by Sophie Jesionowski, who scored 21 points, 15 coming in the third quarter alone.

Massasoit hosts No. 1 Roxbury on Tuesday at 5 p.m.

SCORING SPREE: The 90 points marked the most by Massasoit since March 2, 2014, when the Warriors defeated Roxbury CC 98-95 in a triple overtime victory in the Region 21 Championship. In addition, Massasoit averaged 88.5 points per game for the week.

DOUBLING UP FROM DOWNTOWN: Massasoit sank 12 3-pointers in back-to-back games in wins over Bunker Hill and Holyoke. The team's previous high in 3s was six, coming against Dean and UCAP.

ELIAS ERUPTS: After scoring 28 points over her first three games, Natascha Elias has come alive, posting point totals of 31 and 26 in her last two games. Over the two-game span, the freshman has buried 13 3-pointers in 20 attempts.