Milford Mill hosted Towson on Wednesday night with an 11-game winning streak on the line, and the way the Millers played for most of the first quarter, it looked like they would extend it.
The Millers built a 14-point lead, only to see the Generals answer with a monster run en route to a 54-49 victory.
Milford Mill led 18-4 before Towson responded with a 23-2 run. The Millers rallied in the second half and cut the lead to 48-47 with 2:39 left in the fourth quarter, but Sophie Pleszkoch made two free throws and added a basket to push the lead to five.
Haylee Clark answered, cutting the margin to three with just over a minute left. The Millers actually got the ball back with seven seconds left and a chance to tie, but Madden Sysantos intercepted the inbounds pass and fed breaking Leila Franklin for the final points.
Pleszkoch, who scored a game-high 22 points, had confidence when she was at the line late.
“I wasn’t that nervous because I can rely on my teammates,” she said. “Obviously there was some nerves, but I knew it would be OK. Even if I missed they would still have my back.”
Towson, which had its own nine-game winning streak end Monday in a loss to North Harford, improved to 10-2, while Milford dropped to 11-2.
The Millers used a frenetic press to force 10 turnovers in the first quarter when they built the big lead. They were also playing a Towson team that was without two point guards and another player who were all out with the flu. Towson coach Tim Gavin had to call two timeouts in the first five minutes of the game.
“Honestly, the strategy was to spread our timeouts and just see what happens,” Gavin said. “I told our coaches, let’s kind of use this first quarter like the beginning of a boxing match.”
If it was a boxing match, it was close to being stopped as Tatyana Fields had four steals and scored seven points, and Tristan Savage and Kiaya Smith had four points each in the quarter for the Millers.
Towson closed the opening quarter with a 3-pointer by Sysantos and basket by Sophia Williams to cut the lead to 11 at the break.
Williams, who also missed the North Harford loss along with the three key players, scored eight points and added nine rebounds. Pleszkoch also had nine rebounds as the Generals outrebounded the Millers, 38-21.
Milford’s downfall came in the second quarter when it didn’t make any field goals and scored only two free throws.
“I think we got a little bit comfortable. We’ve got to keep our foot on the gas,” Milford coach Candyce Jeter said.
Meanwhile, Pleszkoch scored nine points in the second quarter.
“I think we just got angry that we weren’t winning. Not like bad angry; we wanted to win. I think we wanted it more than them,” Pleszkoch said. “Coach Gavin always says whoever wants it more is going to win and I think this team wanted it more after the first quarter.”
The active 2-1-2 zone defense also presented problems for the Millers’ talented perimeter shooters.
“Defense was our offense,” Pleszkoch said. “We knew they could make 3s and they were shooting from so far out and that if they hit it, good for them, but our defense we knew we couldn’t let them drive in the paint because that’s where they were really good. I think we stopped that all game and I think that’s really what helped us win.”
Fields led Milford with four 3s and Haylee Clark (15 points) added two, but they didn’t heat up until the fourth quarter.
Trailing by 10 after three quarters, the Millers got a defensive life off the bench from Jasmine Bryant and Karisma Martin in the fourth quarter.
“They bring the energy off the bench.” Jeter said.
Martin and Clark each had a 3-pointer and Fields had a pair in the final quarter, but the Generals never let them pull even despite Milford forcing 10 turnovers in the fourth quarter just like in the first.
“I think it will teach them to continue their pace and if you let off the gas, they see what happens when you don’t put a full game together,” Jeter said. “It’s a great lesson to learn before playoffs.”
Gavin’s team taught him a less as well when they convinced him not to change defenses or the press break. And he also believed in her leader Pleszkock.
“She didn’t blink whatever we were down … and she was fired up,” Gavin said. “She just kind of took over that first quarter and the team followed her. She is a very humble, quiet person and she is quietly having one of the best statistical seasons of anybody that’s come through our program and we’ve had some.”
Towson — 9 18 13 14 – 54
Milford Mill — 18 2 10 19 – 49
TOW: Sophie Pleszkoch 22, Sophia Williams 8, Leila Franklin 8, Madden Sysantos, 7, Emme Damareck 6, Lily Eastham 3.
MM: Tatyana Fields 18, Haylee Clark 15, Tristian Savage 4, Kiaya Smith 6, Karisma Martin 3, Jasmine Bryant 2, Nysiah Rickmon 1.
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