Murphy’s late free throw beats Attleboro

Junior forward Olivia Murphy played her best game of her high school career last Tuesday night, hitting a game-winning free throw with three seconds left to lead the Canton girls’ basketball team to a victory over Attleboro 61-60.

Alana Pitts-Anaya

The Bulldogs, who had been trailing the entire game, were tied 60-60 with three seconds to play before Murphy was fouled and forced to the free-throw line to decide the game. Murphy missed the first, but on her second attempt, she hit the game-winning shot with ease to secure the win.

Although she was defended well by Attleboro forwards all night, Murphy had a career-high 30 points and 24 rebounds to go along with six blocks and was very effective hitting layups off of Canton’s fast-break offense.

Canton head coach Kaitlin Mills said Murphy’s hustle was the reason for her dominant performance.

“She was being doubled and triple-teamed all night,” said Mills. “She is one of those kids who plays every second of the game and goes all out. She has an amazing amount of energy and she wants it, and because of that she does well on the boards and in scoring. She dominated because of her hustle and talent.”

Attleboro’s defenders disrupted Canton’s half-court offense throughout the game. The Bulldogs were down 10 points with four minutes left in the game until Canton sophomore guard Lauren Berman, who had just two points going into the fourth quarter, went from ice cold to red hot in seconds, hitting two late three-point shots to spark the offense.

Sophomore forwards Sarah Winkler and Kristen Burns also hit clutch fourth quarter free throws for the Bulldogs en route to their comeback.

Junior point guard Alana Pitts-Anaya, who only had two points in the first three quarters, came alive in the fourth and finished with 14 points, five assists, six rebounds, and four steals.

The win was Canton’s second comeback victory this month. On January 14, after trailing by as many as 10 in the second half to King Philip, the Bulldogs’ offense erupted in the fourth quarter to win 65-57. Coach Mills feels more confident in her young team moving forward, knowing they can produce in the fourth quarter when it matters most.

This game was a huge confidence booster for us,” said Mills. “We proved to ourselves that we can win it in the fourth quarter. Not every team can win it when we’re down like that, but this team can.”

On Friday night, Canton suffered its worst home loss of the season, losing 69-38 to a much more experienced Franklin team.

The loss left the Canton fans silent, and all that could be heard in the gym was the intensified sound of squeaking from the basketball shoes of the Franklin defenders who pressed the Bulldogs offense all night.

Pitts-Anaya was held to only nine points while Berman was held to just two. Murphy had 19 points and 10 rebounds in the loss.

“They gave us trouble everywhere in the backcourt, guards, and on the post,” Mills said. “They can do everything; they have shooters, post players, and they’re incredibly quick and athletic.”

Mills called the game a “wake-up call” for the Bulldogs and credited Franklin with their balanced attack as every player on their roster scored.

Canton is now 7-5 on the season. The girls were scheduled to play Tuesday at home against Sharon and again on Friday at Foxboro.

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Posted by Tony Catinella on Feb 3 2011. Filed under High School, Sports, Uncategorized. Both comments and pings are currently closed.