Brucci's shooting keeps Knights perfect

From early in the third quarter until midway through the fourth, the Prospect and Conant girls basketball teams were never separated by more than 3 points.

But then Knights 5-foot-5 junior sharpshooter Danielle Brucci stepped into the picture.

Getting free at almost the identical spot each time, Brucci accepted nifty outlet passes from Alyssa Glennon and Megan Murray to convert back-to-back 3-pointers which gave the Knights a 50-41 lead with 2:29 left in the game.

Conant (5-1) never recovered and the Knights kept their record perfect with a 55-46 Mid-Suburban League crossover victory at the Jean Walker Field House on Tuesday night.

Prospect (7-0) was led by Murrray's 20 points and 14 rebounds while Brucci added 17 points and four-3-pointers, including her big two in the final 3:20.

"That No. 10 (Brucci) hit some clutch 3s," said Conant coach Dan Travers. "Prospect is a good team. We made too many mistakes and they capitalized."

Brucci was all by herself for her final two 3-pointers.

"They were doubling down low, so they (Glennon and Murray) knocked the ball out to me," she said. "That's my favorite spot on the floor (right of the lane behind the circle)."

"Oh my gosh," said Prospect first-year coach Martha Kelly about Brucci's outside efficiency. "She's awesome. I've been telling her since the summer to 'shoot the ball, shoot the ball.' I think tonight if finally sunk in.

"She's got the great shooter's touch. I want her to shoot as much as she can."

Lisa Parisi was shooting up a storm for Conant, too, in the second half.

The 5-6 senior guard scored all 13 of her points in the final 16 minutes, including three 3-pointers.

"Lisa stepped up for us ( in the second half)," Travers said. "She did some scoring for us and kept us in the game." Michelle Rawleigh, a 5-11 senior forward, scored 8 of her 13 points in the first for Conant.

"Defensively, I thought Megan Murray did a great job on her," Kelly said. "Michelle Rawleigh is a player and she averages a lot of points. Megan was awesome on defense."

Alyssa and Lexi Glennon each had 5 assists for the Knights while Rachel Hunt added 8 points and 5 rebounds.

Conant connected for eight 3s. Ariana Zades had 2 while Emma Loos, Monica Danek and Rawleigh each had one.

"I think our defense really stepped up at the end," Brucci added about the Knights' strong finish. "I don't think anything I did or anyone else could have happened without our defense playing as it did at the end of the game."

Fittingly, Brucci scored the Knights' final basket with three seconds left when she converted a layup after a nifty pair of exchange passes between herself and Alyssa Glennon on a fast break.

"That was an incredible pass I got from Alyssa," Brucci said of the final layup.