Patriot girls lose close battle to Tide

With his squad on a solid streak, having won three of its previous four games, head coach Chris Porrazzo and the Revere High School girls’ basketball team gave the neighboring rival Everett Crimson Tide all they could handle on Tuesday at home. The Patriots got a super 20-plus point effort from Shayna Smith but they fell just short by a close 49-47 margin in a Greater Boston League (GBL) tussle.

Revere led 44-41 on a Lea Doucette basket with just under four minutes left of the final quarter. But Everett would outscore the Patriots 8-3 the rest of the way to come away the victor. Revere still held a 47-46 edge with about 40 seconds remaining before the Tide tacked on the final three points.

Tuesday’s performance was a clear sign of progress for Revere, which lost by an 18-point spread at Everett in the season opener back in December. Smith netted 23 points to go along with seven rebounds in the loss. Center Belma Velic was also a force, pouring in 14 points while hauling down four rebounds and dishing out three assists.

Porrazzo said before Tuesday’s contest that “the second time through our schedule we want to show teams how much we have improved. Everett is our first chance to prove it.” The Patriots, now 4-7 overall on the season (4-4 in the league) win, seem to have accomplished that goal with Tuesday’s effort.

The next challenge for Revere took place Thursday when they hosted Somerville in another GBL tilt. The Patriots then travel to face Winthrop on Friday and host Lynn Classical next Tuesday. The Patriots will have a chance to show their improvement against the Rams, who beat them by 23 back on Dec. 20 at Classical.

Revere’s fourth victory of the season came against league foe Malden last Thursday. Once again, Smith and Velic were the mainstays offensively, as Smith notched 15 points and grabbed nine boards. She also contributed five assists.  Velic scored nine points and also finished with nine rebounds.  Nisrin Sekkat collected six key points in the second half, which, Porrazzo said, “really opened up the rest of the offense for our team.”

Porrazzo described the Malden win as “a great win on the road against a tough team. Our whole team contributed to this win.”