Sisters and basketball stars Sophie (wearing red shirt) and Lucy Tougas share some time together in the gym where they practice in the Glens Falls High School, on Wednesday.
Sophie Tougas, left, guards her sister, Lucy, during basketball practice Wednesday at the Glens Falls High School gym.
Sisters and basketball stars, Sophie (wearing Red shirt) and Lucy Tougas share a laugh at practice in the Glens Falls High School gymnasium Wednesday.
Sophie Tougas, left, guards her sister, Lucy, during basketball practice Wednesday in the Glens Falls High School gymnasium.
Sisters and basketball stars Sophie, left, and Lucy Tougas pose Wednesday in the Glens Falls High School.
Sisters and basketball stars Sophie, left, and Lucy Tougas pose Wednesday in the Glens Falls High School gymnasium.
Sisters and basketball stars, Sophie (wearing Red shirt) and Lucy Tougas practice in the gym Wednesday at Glens Falls High School.
Sisters and basketball stars, Sophie, right, and Lucy Tougas, left, practice shooting in the Glens Falls High School gymnasium Wednesday.
Sisters and basketball stars, Sophie ( wearing Red shirt) and Lucy Tougas share some time together in the gym where they practice in the Glens Falls High School, Wednesday.
Sisters and basketball stars, Sophie ( wearing Red shirt) and Lucy Tougas share some time together in the gym where they practice in the Glens Falls High School, Wednesday.
Sisters and basketball stars, Sophie ( wearing Red shirt) and Lucy Tougas share some time together in the gym where they practice in the Glens Falls High School, Wednesday.
GLENS FALLS — Lucy Tougas eyeballed her sister while answering the question. Sophie Tougas just kind of grinned.
The only rivalry between Glens Falls’ basketball-playing sisters is who gets to 1,000 points first.
“She’s told me on many occasions that it will not be my best choice to get it before her,” said Sophie, a sophomore.
“I just want to get it first,” said Lucy, a senior. She laughed and added, “I’m excited for her to get 1,000 — I think it’s great that she’s doing it so early in her career. I just want to get it first and I’ll be fine.”
The sisters could have the unusual distinction of reaching 1,000 career points in the same game sometime this week. Sophie Tougas has the edge with 987 career points, while Lucy has 970.
They were not even aware of how close they were until recently.
“It was never really on our minds,” Lucy Tougas said. “I think my dad mentioned that we must be close to 1,000 points, and we ended up looking back and we were like 50 away.”
The Indians have games at Schuylerville on Monday and home against Queensbury on Thursday, their Senior Night.
“(Lucy) said it could be in the same game, just not before her,” Sophie said with a smile.
“It could be the next play, I don’t care,” Lucy added with a laugh.
“That’s a cool thing when you have two sisters who are going to hit 1,000 probably within a night of each other,” Indians coach Mark Girard said. “If I have anything to do with it, they’ll probably do it the same night.”
Glens Falls’ high-scoring sister act is coming down to the wire — five more regular-season games, and then as many playoff games as they can manage after that.
“It’s weird — it’s getting to the point where it’s becoming realistic, like we have X number of games left, and it’s like, ‘Wow, that went by fast,’” Sophie said.
“It’s really sad — I’ll probably not be able to hold it together during our senior game,” said Lucy, who has verbally committed to play at Queens College. “I don’t remember a time coming into the gym and her not being with me. It’s going to be a big change. It’s exciting because I’ll be moving to a new program, but it’s definitely sad that we’re going to end this chapter.”
The sisters — Lucy, 17, and Sophie, 15 — proclaim each other as best friends. They have played together on virtually every team, basketball and soccer, since they started as kids. Lucy started basketball in fourth grade, and second-grader Sophie was right there with her.
“I think it’s only been one year of AAU that we weren’t on the same team together,” Lucy Tougas said.
That has allowed the sisters to anticipate each other’s moves, to remarkable effect.
“I have a sixth sense of where Sophie is on the court,” Lucy said. “If I see an opening, I know she’s going to get there and so if I get the ball to the opening, she’s going to get it.”
“I just know that she’s going to get it to me no matter where I am on the court. I’m always ready for her passes,” Sophie said.
Girard chuckled when asked about their radar lock.
“You can tell they’ve been playing together for a lot of years,” he said. “They know where each other is going to be, and sometimes Lucy anticipates before Sophie makes that cut. . The connection is Lucy handling the ball and Sophie coming off a back-cut or something, and Lucy will know where she is all the time.”
They get along fine on the court, as well, except for the occasional misfire.
“Once in a while, she gets mad at me when I don’t catch her passes,” Sophie said. “She’s, like, a perfectionist, and I’m not always . ”
“Sometimes she gets lazy and doesn’t make the right cut that she knows is the right cut,” Lucy interrupted, with a grin.
“The majority of the time we do get along,” Sophie said.
The sisters play very different roles for the Indians. At nearly 6 feet, Sophie Tougas is long and lanky, with a remarkable shooting touch from the outside — she averages 18.3 points per game, with 49 3-pointers this season. She is also a slick ballhandler and tenacious defender.
“This past year of AAU has helped her to be able create her own shot, which not a lot of players can do,” Lucy said.
“The fact that she can score off the dribble — I haven’t seen it out of any girls basketball player, be able to cross you over and then pull up and hit a jump shot in your face — is pretty impressive,” Girard said. “I’ve talked to a lot of college coaches who are scouting her, and they say, ‘I don’t have anybody who can do that right now.’”
Lucy Tougas, meanwhile, has been the Indians’ floor general for three seasons. At 5-9, she can run the team as the point guard, dish out assists, or play in the post and grab rebounds.
“She’s a mismatch for many point guards that have to defend her,” Girard said. “She’s a strong girl who’s 5-9, 5-10 — it’s a tough matchup for a quick girl on her, but we can put her down there (in the post), and not only will she score, she’ll make the right decision to kick it back out to Sophie for a 3 or drop it down to Taylor (Scarincio) for another bucket.”
Knee trouble has forced Lucy Tougas to alter her game somewhat. With her right knee in a brace that hampers her side-to-side movement, it means less playing the point and defending the top opposing player, and more playing in the paint.
“It’s definitely affected me — I can’t play as hard defense as I usually do, as I want to, and as far as jump shots, I don’t have as much lift as I did before,” said Lucy, who said the knee will be looked at again after the season. “It’s added another dimension to my game.”
Girard said the Indians are clicking again as Lucy’s knee has improved.
“As Lucy goes, we kinda go,” he said. “Yes, Sophie’s got to score and all that, but just having Lucy as a healthy, viable option is comforting for me as a coach.”
Girard underlined the importance of the Tougas girls to the Indians’ success, especially in close games.
“When it’s time to finish the game, I want those two on the floor,” Girard said. “And if it comes down to it, I want the ball in Lucy’s hands and Sophie coming off a back cut or creating on her own. Lucy’s going to make the right decision and eight out of 10 times, Sophie’s going to knock it down. And that’s why we’ve been so successful.”
At 13-2, Glens Falls is poised for a high seed in Class B, where the Indians hope to defend their Section II title and advance farther than regionals. The Indians have six seniors — guards Caitlin Hogan and Emilie Moses join the Tougas sisters as starters along with junior forward Taylor Scarincio.
“We’ve been together for so long, ever since fourth grade, same group of girls,” Sophie Tougas said. “We know how each other plays and we all get along off the court, so that helps a lot.”
“This year is special because our team is pretty talented and I think we’re going to make a good run at the end of the year,” Lucy Tougas said.
“Hopefully we can finish it strong,” Girard said. “If we play our best, we’re a tough out — and I’m talking on a state level, as well. If we’re playing at our best, it’s tough for a B school to beat us.
“I think that would be a fitting end for Lucy to ride off into the sunset after a good long run in sectionals and beyond,” Girard added. “Hopefully that will happen for all of us.”
Follow Pete Tobey on Twitter @PTobeyPSVarsity and check out his blogs on poststar.com.
