SCARBOROUGH – Coming into this winter the Scarborough girls basketball team, 19-2 and regional runners-up a year ago, were again expected to be one of the top contenders in Western Class A.

So far, so good.

The Red Storm continued their early-season path of destruction Thursday night against Portland, utilizing their relentless full-court press to open up a 21-point halftime edge before easing to a 57-44 victory over the Bulldogs at the Portland Expo. Scarborough had the lead up to as much as 25 in the second half but then stepped off the pedal, allowing Portland to get back to within 11 late as the Storm tallied just four points, all from free throws, in the final quarter.

Though happy with the victory, Red Storm coach Ron Cote said he would have liked to see a better finish.

“It was a good win,” Cote said said. “I thought we had good intensity and good energy the whole first half but I thought we had a letdown the second half, I wasn’t happy with that. It’s almost like after I took the press off we were going to relax and take it easy and we can’t have that. We have to play with intensity the whole game, the whole 32 minutes.”

As she was in the first four games, star senior guard Mary Redmond was the leading scorer for Scarborough, putting in 16, brining her season average up to 15.4 points per game.

Maria Philbrick added 12 for the Storm, while Ashley Briggs chipped in nine, Courtney Alofs six, Marisa O’Toole five and Taylor Leborgne four to round out the balanced attack.

While they have plenty of players who can put the ball in the basket, with no player over 5-foot-9 but plenty of speed and quickness all the way down the roster, a fast tempo will always be key to the Storm’s success and they got just that early on, using their press to consistently harass and turn the Bulldogs over in the backcourt.

Leading 14-7 after a quarter, Scarborough turned it on in the second, outscoring Portland 22-6, with many of those coming in transition and on fast break lay ups as the Bulldogs struggled to cope with the sheer speed of the game.

“We don’t have much size, but we do have some athletes, we have some quickness and we’re going to try to wear you down,” Cote said. “We want to play fast on defense, we want to play fast on offense. We’ve got a lot of the same type of athletes where they can handle the ball and take it to the basket. That’s how we play.”

While a frenetic pace has been Scarborough’s trademark over the past few years, especially last season under coach Tom Maines, Philbrick said Cote’s system has made the Storm even more dangerous.

“We’ve always been a defensive team but I think his adjustments this year have really helped us,” she said. “(The press) just keeps the game moving fast and we play well fast because we’re a quick, small team. It’s a big part of our game.”

That was apparent in the second half. After four straight Portland turnovers as a result of the pressure led to eight quick points for the Storm and a 49-24 lead, Cote called off the hounds to the Bulldogs obvious appreciation. From there Portland closed out the game on a 20-5 run as the roles reversed, with the Bulldogs benefiting from several Scarborough turnovers as they got within 55-44 in the final minute before a pair of Briggs free throws made it a 57-44 final.

Like her coach, Philbrick, a senior captain who is second on the team with 9.2 points a game, was happy with the end result if not the end of the game.

“It was another good win for us but I think we could have done a lot better,” Philbrick said. “A win’s a win, but we had a little letdown and I think it’s important that we really just stay consistent and keep our game high.”

No matter the final margin it was the fifth-straight win to open the season for the Storm, who have beaten opponents by an average of 22.8 points a game so far. That’s about as perfect a start as the Red Storm could have hoped for considering Cote took over only in October after Maines stepped down suddenly in September.

With little to no preseason preparation time, Cote said he has been happy with the way his players have adjusted to his system, adding that the team will use the holiday break, during which they’ll be back at the Expo on Dec. 28 for holiday tournament exhibitions with Falmouth and Yarmouth, to work on some aspects of the game that have inevitability gone overlooked before returning to league action with a 1 p.m. New Year’s Eve game at home against Biddeford.

“This whole beginning of the season I’ve had to put stuff in and we haven’t really worked a lot on shooting the basketball and doing a lot of the fundamentals that we probably need to do to improve, so we’re going to spend some time on that,” Cote said. “We’re getting there. There’s a still a little growing to do. I’ve gotten used to them and I think they’re getting used to me and I don’t think we’ve peaked yet. I don’t think we’re playing at the best that we can be, but it’s still early.”

Scarborough guard Maria Philbrick dives to the hole past Portland’s Haley Nelson in the second quarter. Philbrick had 12 points in the Red Storm’s 57-44 victory. (Staff photos by Cameron Dunbar)
Scarborough guard Mary Redmond splits a pair of Portland defenders on her way to the hoop in the first quarter. Redmond led the Red Storm with 16 points in their 57-44 victory.
Scarborough’s Taylor Leborgne goes in for a breakaway lay up in the second quarter against Portland. The Red Storm’s relentless full-court press defense led to many such open baskets as they beat the Bulldogs 57-44.
Scarborough guard Ashley Briggs drives on Portland’s Elizabeth Donato in the second quarter Briggs had nine points in the Red Storm’s 57-44 victory.
Scarborough’s Marisa O’Toole goes up for a lay up in the second quarter against Portland. O’Toole scored five points in the Red Storm’s 57-44 victory.