TWHS Girls Basketball

A little more than two minutes remained in the fourth quarter when Upper Arlington guard Michela Paradiso caught a pass and dribbled behind the three-point line.

Thomas Worthington was coming on strong, and the tried and true strategy right out of the book of Basketball 101 was to hold the ball or make another pass to milk the clock with a five-point lead.

Paradiso did not hesitate in sinking a three-pointer as the Golden Bears pulled away for a 64-52 victory over the Cardinals last night in an Ohio Capital Conference Central Division game.

Upper Arlington (10-4, 8-1) didn't digress from its free-wheeling, aggressive style in taking a one-game lead over Thomas Worthington (10-4, 7-2) and Dublin Coffman with five conference games remaining.

The Bears hit nine three-pointers, distributed the ball like a Las Vegas blackjack dealer and played hustling help defense. Mary Corbett and Sarah Hobbs had three three-pointers each, and Paradiso had two. Paradiso led with 18 points, Corbett had 15 and Hobbs 12.

"Our shooters have clearance to shoot it," UA coach Chris Savage said. "I don't want to restrain them. Our shooters have worked too hard on their games to do that. Aggressiveness has helped us get us this far. We're more athletic and free-wheeling this year. This is the way we have to play."

The team bears little resemblance to the one that won the division championship last year. Those Bears were a power team led by a core of seniors such as Jane Windler and Ashley Stuart.

These Bears are short and slight, and there are only three seniors on the roster. Finding the open player, hitting the offensive backboard and burying three-pointers are high on the checklist.

"We have the mindset that if we're open, we're going to shoot it," Corbett said. "We emphasize ball movement, and to do that everyone has to work together to be a dominant team. We came into the year confident. We've worked hard in practice. We've bought into coach's system. Coach has trust in us."

Taking a second game from the Cardinals was difficult. UA led 48-33 with 28.6 seconds left in the third quarter on a three by Corbett, but Thomas Worthington got within 53-48 with 2:34 left in the game on two free throws by Frannie Frazier.

Hobbs said the Bears were reminded what was at stake before the game.

"Coach put Dec. 2, 2008 on the dry erase board in the locker room," she said. "That was the last time we lost in this gym. We weren't going to lose tonight. We thought we were the best team in the gym."

The Cardinals also have come back strong after losing star player Erika Rousculp to the University of Charleston. They have only three seniors, but have rising stars in Frazier, a sophomore forward, junior forward Whitney Miller and a veteran sparkplug in senior guard Natalie Carroll.

Carroll scored 18 points and Frazier 15.

"We didn't give up and made a big run at them," coach Laurie Barr said. "Our defensive rotation was good, but they were able to hit some key shots. They are a good shooting team."

mznidar@dispatch.com