Bayside High Bests FHHS Girls Basketball 55-35

girls basketball team played one of its most complete games of the season, thumping Forest Hills 55-35 Thursday night at home.

The game almost didn’t happen, however. Head coach , who was attempting to insert a sub, was whistled for two quick technical fouls in the first 15 seconds of the contest for minor lip service directed at one of the refs. The ejection would’ve left the without a coach, forcing them to forfeit. However, the refs overturned one technical, and allowed the game to continue.

Hero: There wasn’t one clear-cut hero as the Commodores had solid contributions from multiple players.

scored a game-high 16 points, while junior turned in a spectacular effort, registering 14 rebounds and 12 points in the victory.

The Turning Point: Up 27-19 at the half, the Commodores turned up the heat on the opposition, outscoring Forest Hills 20-7 in the third period for a commanding 47-26 lead going into the fourth.

Bottom Line: Bayside (10-4) outplayed the Rangers (12-2) in every facet of the game, especially on the boards, with Mitchell and Durugordon collecting a total of 27 rebounds.

Quotable: Although the Commodores outpaced Forest Hills by 20 points, Piorkowski said he still believes his team has room for improvement.

"We got a ways to go," Piorkowski said. "But the rebounding was a lot better, we kind of protected the ball a little better, and we didn’t turn it over as much as we normally do. But there are things we’ve got to work on to get better — we have to play harder basketball, and work on rebounding on loose balls."

With the playoffs quickly approaching, the veteran coach doesn’t have a problem with decreasing playing time for girls who aren’t putting forth maximum effort.

"I kept subbing because I saw the laziness on the floor — people weren’t going for rebounds, they weren’t boxing out, and you just can’t have that," he said. "They’ve got to play all-out, all the time, and maybe they’ll learn that by watching their teammates from the bench."

Key Stat: The Commodores dominated in second-chance points and rebounding, with 12 offensive boards and 42 overall.

Who's Next? Bayside  in a game on Tuesday at 4:30 p.m. Forest Hills will travel to undefeated Hillcrest on Monday.

Box Score: