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Harding girls shut down opponent

Tribune Chronicle / Bob Ettinger Kia Allen of Warren G. Harding prepares to go up strong to the hoop after getting by Aja Custer of Max S. Hayes in non-conference action on Saturday afternoon at Harding.

WARREN — Basketball coaches hate when the pregame routine is altered in any way. It usually doesn’t end well.

Warren G. Harding girls coach Frank Caputo might not be so concerned the next time the Raiders’ schedule is altered following a 62-3 defeat of Cleveland Max S. Hayes on Saturday afternoon.

The Raiders scored eight points during the initial 1:04 of action with the first bucket coming from Ka’Rina Mallory when Kia Allen sent the ball her way in winning the opening tip.

“We came out ready to go,” Caputo said. “We’ve been preaching the first three minutes and the importance of it. We executed what we needed to and fed off our teammates.

“I did not (think it would go quite this way). I thought we’d be a little slow not having the JV game. I thought we’d come out lackadaisical because the pregame wasn’t the same. They came out ready to go.”

Toni Donaldson of Warren G. Harding goes in for the layup as Shannon Meredith of Max S. Hayes contests the shot in non-conference action on Saturday afternoon at Harding.

“Before every game, we try to get each other hyped during the warmup,” Allen said. “We want to start off with aggressive defense and get our energy going. (That first minute) was real important. I got the tip to Ka’Rina and she got the layup. That got us playing aggressively and set the mood for the whole game.”

The Raiders (2-0) used their defense to stifle the Lakers (0-4) right from the jump.

“Our main focus for the first 30 minutes of every practice is defense,” Caputo said. “Our goal is to hold every opponent under 30 points. We’re focused on team defense, feeding off each other and letting our defense be our offense.”

Harding did not allow a bucket until Arianna Ortiz knocked down a 3-pointer for the Lakers with 1:15 to play in the final period. Max Hayes was 1 of 29 (3.4 percent) from the field and turned the ball over 28 times against the Raiders’ defense, which sat back in a passive zone for all of the second half.

“We feel pretty good about (the way we played defense),” Allen said. “We’re not trying to run it up on people. We just do our best and what happens, happens. We’re just trying to go out, play as a team and win.”

Over the first 16 minutes, Harding forced 22 turnovers and allowed just 11 shot attempts in going up, 40-0.

“I’m extremely happy with the way they listened,” Caputo said. “They’re a joy to have because of the way they listen to every coach and they do try and execute it.”

Max Hayes struggled in every aspect offensively.

“I would say they didn’t have to play defense,” Max Hayes coach Shaun Ali said. “A lack of execution was our downfall. They won every 50-50 ball. They were more aggressive. It wasn’t their defense. It was a lack of execution by our offense. They were quicker to the ball.”

On the other end of the floor, the Raiders were efficient. They were 27 of 71 (38 percent) from the field and turned the ball over just twice.

“I’m very excited with the way we played team basketball,” Caputo said. “No one was selfish. They made the extra pass. They played together. They were just as excited for their partners to do well as they were for themselves.”

Allen led the Raiders with 21 points, 10 steals, seven rebounds and four assists. Mallory and Toni Donaldson each added eight points, Indea Phillips had seven and Chardonnay Burke had six.

“We’re just trying to play as a team,” Allen said. “Everyone on the team can score so we have no problem passing the ball. We’re all friends and we’re comfortable together. We have better chemistry (than last year).”

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