PARK SLOPE, BK-Usually, Berkeley Carroll hoop games are played in the BC Athletic Center over by President Street. However, that wasn’t the case earlier this afternoon with the Lady Lions defeating Masters 35-22 to take their second straight.

Due to a school concert, the later start was shifted to the gym at Lincoln Place. Even in an odd setting that had the scorer’s table on part of the court, Coach Morgan Sevigny’s club were able to adjust to life on the other home court used by the middle school teams during the Winter. Technically, they were familiar with it due to some practices along with players who once played their games there. Regardless, it was still another home game even if it didn’t start until after 5 PM due to lots of Friday rush hour travel for their Westchester opponent.

Despite the later start, the Lady Lions accomplished what they set out to, earning a 13-point win in improving to 6-9 on the season. Leading scorer Keyanka Bailey paced them with 19, getting a cool dozen in the second half. She got plenty of help from teammates Sarah Paller (7 Pts incl. trey) and Tess Salvatore (three from downtown). In fact, Paller who played on that court the past few years had no problems finding her spots, connecting on all seven in a superb first half. Nearly identical jumpers came from the right baseline while the three was from the left key.

Her shooting provided an early spark for Berkeley Carroll, who led from start to finish. Meanwhile, Salvatore chipped in scoring all nine from downtown. All three were around the key and hit nothing but net for the emotional leader of a young club. In the opening 16 minutes, Bailey also scored seven on strong finishes, including one that led to a conventional three-point play.

That kind of balance along with solid D saw the Lady Lions build a 13-point lead with four minutes to go in the half. However, Masters hung tough taking advantage of some miscues to run off the last six, pulling within 20-13 at the half. The break allowed BC to regroup but they still came out a little sluggish in the second half, forcing Sevigny to use a timeout. Eventually, they settled down.

Neither team scored much during the first part of the third quarter which featured missed opportunities and sloppy turnovers. That allowed Masters to stay within reach. Finally, Bailey broke loose using lightning speed to go end to end for a couple of easy lay-ins. The junior forward extended out on a very active triangular two geared towards keeping their limited perimeter opponent out of the lane. With good coaching from both Sevigny and assistant Manny, BC held Masters to single possessions while forcing turnovers. They also boxed out well with defensive stopper Olivia Wilson leading the charge.

The fine attention to detail limited their opponent to just three third quarter points. Even if they didn’t score that much themselves, winding up with seven thanks to a late Bailey spurt, Berkeley Carroll still took a 27-16 lead into the final period. In it, Bailey continued her exceptional play converting off steals in transition. An open Salvatore also knocked down a big three as the Lady Lions began to pull away.

Ultimately, even with Sevigny playing just six with mostly her starting five including foul plagued Morgo Miller getting the bulk, they were still good enough to win comfortably. Gianni LaTange was the only player who came in off the bench, giving a banged up Wilson, Miller, Paller and Salvatore a rest. The liberal subbing helped her players stay fresh.

The Berkeley Carroll Girls Varsity earned the rest of the weekend off before returning Monday to prepare for a Wednesday home tilt versus L.R.E.I. The Boys Varsity will also be in action as part of the doubleheader. They can at least be certain the games will be played back at their usual home.

Note: The JV and Varsity Lions will pay a visit to Staten Island Academy in Todt Hill Monday.