SOUTH HADLEY — The Holyoke basketball team’s performance against South Hadley on Monday night was due to a combination of a few things.
The Purple Knights came into the game winless after back-to-back close loses to Sci-Tech and Longmeadow. South Hadley entered the game undefeated off four-straight wins.
The matchup is also one of the fiercest rivalries in the area. With bragging rights on the line, the stands at South Hadley High School were full.
The game also marked the return of former South Hadley coach Juan Maldonado. The Holyoke native coached the Tigers for five years before taking the reigns at Holyoke this season.
The Purple Knights did not let this opportunity pass for an important win.
Holyoke guard Jovaughn Smith-Antuna’s energy and 24 points from point guard Brian Cristobal helped Holyoke get past South Hadley, 76-43.
“We’ve had a rough couple of games,” Smith-Antuna said. “Today I felt like I needed to bring the energy. … Overall it helped us.”
Hunter Carey scored 11 points for the Tigers.
Holyoke opened the game with a swarming full-court press. After a Purple Knights layup to open the game, Smith-Antuna stole the ball off the ensuing Tigers inbounds and scored. Later in the quarter, Cristobal hit a pullup 3-pointer to give Holyoke a 10-4 lead.
“I think (Holyoke) did a good job of taking away the spots we wanted to go in the half-court offense,” South Hadley coach Dave Dubuc said. “We weren’t mentally tough enough to get the ball where we needed to get the ball and initiate our offense.”
South Hadley struggled to break Holyoke’s press early, but later in the half guards Carey and Dylan Cottingham flashed their ballhandling ability and got Holyoke to settle into a half-court defense.
The Purple Knights kept the Tigers’ defense moving throughout the game. Holyoke drove into the paint to draw in the defense and kicked the ball out to shooters. When South Hadley’s defense didn’t collapse, Cristobal and Smith-Antuna finished in the paint.
Cristobal also hit six 3-pointers in the game.
“We’ve said that we need him to score, but it’s how and when to score. Taking the right shot,” Maldonado said. “He is understanding it. He is putting in the work and getting people involved.”
After a solid opening quarter, Smith-Antuna gave Holyoke a big boost in the second. He scored eight points in the quarter and kept possessions alive with offensive rebounds. Behind his effort, the Purple Knights went into halftime ahead, 33-26.
“You don’t have to run sets for him, he goes and gets it,” Maldonado said. “He is an unbelievably great kid. He is super coachable, a coach’s dream. He’s definitely the motor of the team. Super excited to have him.”
Holyoke’s defense continued to shut down opportunities for South Hadley in the second half. Smith-Antuna and William Cruz played poised interior defense and kept the Tigers off the boards. A steal from Smith-Antuna midway through the third quarter ended with a layup on the other end to put the Purple Knights ahead, 45-30.
“One of our main things in practice is that we run a man defense. We run it all day,” Smith-Antuna said. “That helps us because that improves are team defense. We know where to rotate and locate our man. As the season goes on we will get better, but today we really improved on defense.”
Holyoke’s defense forced South Hadley to attack one-on-one matchups along the perimeter, but the Tigers struggled to make shots from deep.
“We have stressed (team defense) since day one,” Maldonado said. “In the fourth quarter, (South Hadley) scored eight points. That is one of our goals, to keep teams to 10 our under. I thought we did well playing defense and turning it into easy baskets. … I think we shared the ball well.”
Cruz and Cristobal combined for 12 points in the fourth quarter to help seal the Holyoke victory.
“It was mental toughness,” Dubuc said on what the difference was. “Sprinting down, screening to get your teammate open, cutting. (Holyoke) got to dictate where we started our offense. Credit to them and their preparation. We had to match that.”