All Bishop Loughlin did Tuesday, a day after a disheartening loss to Archbishop Molloy, was shoot around. Coach Kasim Alston paid special attention to wing Chelsea Gibson, one of his best outside threats.
“You’re long, you’re lanky – shoot the ball,” Alston told her. “You gotta bury them when you get a chance.”
The sophomore got that opportunity Wednesday.
With the shot clock running down and Loughlin behind by a point, Gibson used a screen near the top of the key, stepped back and drilled a long 3-pointer to give the Lions the lead for good in a 67-65 victory over St. Francis Prep in CHSAA Brooklyn/Queens Division I girls basketball in Fresh Meadows.
“We only had six seconds on the clock,” Gibson said. “As soon as it left, I felt like it was going in.”
It was the first victory for the program since moving up to the top division last season. Loughlin (8-6, 1-5) had opportunities before, like against Molloy when the Lions were actually up at halftime. But this time, despite trailing all game, they persevered.
“I really believe in these girls, but they gotta believe in themselves,” Alston said. “We gotta play hard-nosed defense and talk and communicate. They knuckled down in the end.”
St. Francis (5-7, 1-3) led 34-26 at the half, but Loughlin was down just three going into the fourth quarter. Then Aliyah Alston got hot. The junior point guard drilled a pair of 3-pointers to get Loughlin within 52-50 with 5:23 left. After Prep went back up again, 58-52, on a Shatira Hamlet runner with 3:37 to go, Aliyah Alston was fouled by Katherine Kraus behind the arc and made all three foul shots to make it a one-possession game again.
“That was the turning factor of the game,” said Kasim Alston, Aliyah’s father. “Her nine points was the turning point to keep us in the game. Although she had four fouls, she never stopped playing hard.”
She did foul out, though, seconds later. Loughlin needed others to step up and got it. After SFP went ahead a point, sophomore Imani Tate made a sweet baseline move for a layup. The Terriers got two free throws from Caitlin O’Doherty, but then Gibson broke their hearts with her step-back 3-pointer. In the fourth quarter, Ayanna Ratliff was 6-of-6 from the foul line to help the Lions seal it.
“It showed a lot of character,” Kasim Alston said. “It showed a lot of heart finally and belief in one another.”
Not to mention some depth. Ratliff, who had 15 points, and Gibson (seven points) both come off the bench. Tate also had 15 points and Jasmine Alston added seven points for Loughlin, which meets Christ the King on Friday.
“Listen, the only thing I want from you is to rebound, box out and play together,” Kasim Alston said he told his players. “Stop pointing a finger at one another. Stop saying what she did or what she didn’t do. When you turn the ball over, we turn the ball over. When she makes a shot, we make a shot. If she makes a bad shot and we lose, we lost the game. So stop saying what you did or what you didn’t do and let’s play together.”
Loughlin did that down the stretch and overcame multiple leads in the second half. It all added up to the first win at this level in years for the Lions.
“We don’t give up,” Ratliff said. “Even when we’re down by 1,000, we don’t give up. If we work as a team, we’ll be able to beat anybody.”