Exeter-West Greenwich girls basketball remains perfect at home. What's next on their list?
WEST GREENWICH — After heartbreak in the semifinals last season Exeter-West Greenwich girls basketball is retooled and ready.
The Scarlet Knights have a pair of seniors and a talented underclassmen rotation to top Division III at 12-2 overall. EWG is perfect at home this winter and used 21 points from captain Ella Johnson and 22 from Kate Hebert to dispatch Burrillville 55-44 on Monday.
But it wasn’t the eight made 3-point field goals or the transition speed of the Scarlet Knights that makes them a championship contender, they’ve been talking about a title all season and it shows.
For more on Exeter-West Greenwich and a noteworthy freshmen matchup from Monday, read on:
EWG's title aspirations
The Scarlet Knights haven’t won a girls basketball title since the 2004 D-II championship. This current iteration of EWG is aiming to change that after a near-title berth last winter.
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We're looking to win it,” Johnson said. “We're looking to win the whole thing. I think if we do, we're usually the underdog, usually the team that doesn't win, so winning the division would be great.”
Johnson’s assist to Kendall Husband for a corner triple put EWG ahead 49-41 with 6:35 left in regulation. That lead expanded to a dozen, an advantage the Broncos couldn’t overcome.
“Win a championship for our team,” Hebert said of her goals. “We haven't won in years.”
With just five games left in the regular season, the Scarlet Knights are on their way to potentially locking up the top seed in the division.
“We’re just trying to play good basketball and get better each day,” EWG coach Erica Berek said.
Freshman vs. freshman
Hebert gave EWG a 28-22 advantage in the second quarter with back-to-back triples and a 3-point play in consecutive possessions. The first-year guard managed 11 of EWG’s 14 points in the frame.
“She's really fast and her defense is amazing,” Johnson said of her younger teammate. “She's always getting loose balls and taking it away.”
Said Berek of Hebert: “Spunk. She is the fire behind us with endless amounts of energy.”
On the other end, standout Ava Ayotte poured in 11 of her own in the quarter and finished with a game-high 28 points.
“I think she's a great player,” Johnson said of Ayotte. “She's always driving and always looking to get the foul.
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Ayotte’s tough drives and touch around the rim kept the Broncos close throughout. The first-year guard corralled a loose ball and muscled up a inside shot for a 3-point play — the difficult shot cut the Bronco deficit to 44-41 with 7:48 to play.
“When were all [in transition] and going fast,” Ayotte said of when the Broncos are at their best. “When I'm going in for lanes and driving and getting the foul or just driving in general, I just feel like it brings us together.
“I feel like we build off of those moments.”
Ayotte and Hebert played against each other in the past.
“She keeps it going and picks it up for her team,” Hebert said of Ayotte. “She's the star of the show.”
Contact Jacob Rousseau at jrousseau@providencejournal.com. Follow him on X: @ByJacobRousseau
This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: EWG girls basketball remains perfect at home, edges Burrillville
