WINDSOR — Windsor High girls basketball coach Bruce MacKay put it eloquently enough.

“I thought Hartford came to play and we didn’t,” he said. “It took 11 to 12 minutes for us to really get into the game.”

Once the Yellow Jackets found their groove, however, they were hard to stop.

Olivia Rockwood scored 28 points, including seven points in the last 4:11 of the second quarter, to lead Windsor to a physical 62-32 victory over visiting Hartford. 

The win is Division III Windsor’s seventh consecutive win over the D-II Hurricanes. The two teams play each other twice a season; the next meeting will be on Saturday, Feb. 15 at Hartford. 

Rockwood’s big night was filled with some slick plays, too. The 3-pointer she hit from the top left of the key with 4 minutes, 11 seconds to play until the was setup by a pump fake, which gave her plenty of space. 

MacKay was also content with the way the senior guard passed the ball, setting up her teammates with easy layups multiple times. It’s one of the reasons why she is committed to playing at the University of Maine next season.

“Her basketball IQ is really top notch,” he said. “She loves to play, she loves her teammates. She’d probably rather give out an assist than make a basket sometimes. She leads by example on the floor”

Hartford’s offense was efficient at the start, though.

After an Evelyn Page trey gave Windsor (9-2) a 3-0 lead to open up the game, the Canes responded with a 9-0 run. Elsie Davis and Kennedy Mullen each had layups, and Davan Murphy knocked down a jumper and 3-pointer. 

“I thought we played a really tough game in the first half,” Hartford coach Heidi Bushway said. “We started off strong. We were just running our offense. Playing tough defense and not letting them get their shots off.”

Rockwood executed a three-point play on a steal, drive and layup with 50 seconds to play in the first quarter to give the Yellow Jackets a 13-11 lead entering the second quarter, a lead that they never lost. 

What put the game too far out of reach for Hartford was Windsor’s third-quarter output. The Yellow Jackets outscored the visitors 15-4.

Rockwood had two 3-pointers in the quarter; she finished the night with four. 

The Yellow Jackets defense caused havoc, too. Their full-court trap lent to fast turnovers turning into easy layups. 

“The effort in the second half I thought was very good,” MacKay said. “We set the tone there, defensively. We got our transition going and it gave us a comfortable lead.”

Elliot Rupp added nine points for Windsor and Adi Prior added seven. 

Jasmine Jenkins was 4-of-5 from the free-throw line and scored a team-high eight points for Hartford (4-5).

Murphy had seven and Bailey Cameron, who fouled out, finished with six. 

NOTES: Officials wore pink and black striped shirts for the 12th annual officials versus cancer campaign. All week referees will don the shirts with pink whistles to raise cancer awareness. … Rockwood’s season-high 30 points came on Jan. 10 at Otter Valley. … The Canes visit Otter Valley on Saturday. … Windsor hosts Newport on Saturday. The Yellow Jackets return to VPA play next Tuesday at Woodstock. … Windsor won the junior varsity contest 52-23.

Pete Nakos can be reached at pnakos@vnews.com.