Talented Tye sisters have Giant incentive in soccer

As far as and were concerned, only one thing could have been better about Saturday’s opening-round win over Novato High in the Marin County Athletic League Girls Basketball Tournament.

If the victory had vaulted into a rematch with Redwood.

Alas, it didn’t. And after the Trojans were eliminated from the tournament by Marin Catholic on Tuesday night, the two-sport standouts are going to have to take care of their personal business on the soccer field this Spring.

You see, Madison Tye, a junior point guard for the Trojans, and sister Alexis, a freshman, are still stinging over Terra Linda’s 50-48 basketball loss to Redwood on Jan. 21 in the MCAL regular season.

Turns out the overtime defeat sent the Trojans into a bit of a tailspin. They went on to lose four in a row and seven of eight leading into the MCAL Tournament.

More than anyone, the Tyes felt terrible about that. Alexis had a chance to win the game for the Trojans in regulation and Madison could have sent the game into a second overtime. Neither succeeded.

Thus, 3½ weeks later, it remains a defeat the Tyes are eager to avenge.

“The Redwood game was a tough game. We played really hard,” Alexis recalled. “But that’s OK because we’re going to get them next time.”

That matchup never materialized in the MCAL Tournament despite the combined efforts of the talented Tyes in the Trojans' 42-27 win over Novato on Saturday.

Not only did the sisters combine for 20 of the 42 points – Madison leading the way with 15 – but their tag-team defensive effort on Novato’s star guard, Mary Buckley, helped limit the Hornets to a total of 27.

“Madison has done a good job running the show and playing great defense. I put her on the best player on the other team,” noted Terra Linda coach .

“Once the other player gets a little tired, we put in Alexis and tire her out even more. They’re both so quick.”

The strategy surely worked against Novato. Buckley missed four of her five shots and finished with more turnovers (six) than points (five).

In part, the defensive mindset comes from soccer. Both sisters are even better outdoors than indoors, with Madison having already committed to attending UCLA on a full soccer scholarship.

“I’m more of a soccer player than a basketball player,” claimed Madison, a star in the Marin FC program when she’s not playing for Terra Linda. “I visited bunch of different schools. I really wanted a big school with a good soccer team. And I like SoCal.

“When I visited UCLA, I thought, ‘Wow, everything is perfect.’ ‘’

The sisters agree playing on the same team is perfectly wonderful. It’s never happened before.

“I love talking basketball with her,” Madison said. “It’s kinda cool to look up and see my sister on the court. I love it when the announcer says, ‘Tye to Tye.’ ‘’

Added Alexis, who at 5-foot-6 is two inches shorter than her older sister, “It’s so fun because we’re totally different players, so we’re good together. And it’s easier on my parents, too.”

Alexis can envision a scenario where she and her sister create a situation four years from now that’s equally convenient for her parents.

“I’m really happy for her,” she said of her sister’s choice of UCLA. “I hope I can follow I her footsteps. Given a choice, I would probably go to the same college as my sister. I like being on her team.”