Whitman girls basketball team beats top-seeded Commack to win Suffolk Class AAA title

The players on the Whitman girls basketball team had additional homework assignments this past week. They might not affect their GPA, but they made all the difference in how long their season would last.

The Wildcats were diligent with their filmwork and defensive game-planning, and they aced the exam.

No. 3 Whitman beat top-seeded Commack, 45-36, on Sunday night in the Suffolk Class AAA championship game at a loud Brookhaven Gymnasium at Suffolk Community College’s Selden campus.That gave the Wildcats back-to-back county championships.

Whitman’s defense was especially dominant and vital to the victory, holding previously undefeated Commack to 14 points in the first half and scoreless until the final 30 seconds of the first quarter.

“We studied the heck out of them,” senior forward Kathleen O’Mara said. “We were playing great defense and we were doing what our team usually does. Our defense is everything and I think we have a great defense and it showed clearly in this game.”

That defensive intensity and attention to detail will be tested at least one more time this season as Whitman — which won its first county championship last season — attempts to win the first Long Island crown in program history.

The Wildcats (20-3) will play Syosset (18-5) in the Long Island Class AAA championship/ Southeast Regional Final at 5 p.m. Sunday at Farmingdale State College.

“Whitman hasn’t won a county championship and we go back-to-back two years in a row, that’s incredible,” junior forward Brianna Verga said. “We’ve worked hard for it and we deserve it.”

O’Mara led Whitman with 16 points. Iris Hoffman added 11 points and Verga had nine.

Sofia Vasselman had 20 points for Commack (22-1).

Whitman coach Dan Trebour wanted his players to challenge Commack’s strong shooters. He knew the Cougars were one of the better-shooting offenses on Long Island and schemed to limit those opportunities.

That played a key role in the low-scoring outcome after Whitman brought a 6-3 lead into the second quarter.

“Sometimes teams’ defenses are better than their offenses,” Trebour said. “Commack and Whitman were two pretty good offensive teams this year, but it’s tough to put up those points in the 50s when teams are prepared and know what you want to do. So it was a great battle and we knew it would be.”

Whitman used a 14-6 third quarter to extend a five-point halftime lead to 33-20. Commack never got within eight points in the fourth quarter.

Said Trebour, “It really is a special group. They are unselfish, their style of play is unselfish, they all genuinely root for each other, and good things happen when you have that high character.”