Benet senior Emma Briggs can do a lot of things well, but she was particularly focused on one skill against Marist on Saturday night.

“We scouted them, and we knew that they boxed out pretty well,” Briggs said. “They are a good rebounding team.

“They didn’t really let many offensive boards out. Especially since I was a little undersized, I told myself that I need to get as many boards as I can to make sure they get as little (as possible).”

Briggs accomplished her mission, pulling down a career-high 16 rebounds, including five on the offensive end. The 6-foot Furman commit also led all players with 22 points and four steals to spearhead the Redwings to a convincing 59-38 victory in the Montini Christmas Tournament championship game.

Briggs, who was named tournament MVP, was so dominant she outrebounded the RedHawks by herself in the first half. She grabbed 13 boards, two more than Marist had as a team, during a defensive struggle when the game was still in doubt.

“She was a beast on the boards,” Benet coach Joe Kilbride said. “It’s one of the facets of her game.

“She’s a very good rebounder. She’s a good defender. She’s a great passer. She can score the ball.”

Briggs scored 13 points in the first half, including an inside hoop off a pass from senior Bridget Rifenburg that broke a 21-21 tie with 58 seconds left in the second quarter. She and Jones scored the final 12 points of the half for Benet (12-1) after Marist (14-3) had taken a 19-16 lead on a 3-pointer from Olivia Cosme.

Jones had 10 of her 12 points before the break, including a 3-pointer that gave the Redwings a 28-23 halftime cushion.

But much more was to come in the second half, as the Redwings turned a tight game into a near rout.

“We definitely came out at halftime and we were like, ‘We need to win this game,’ ” Briggs said. “So our mentality kind of changed after that, and then we switched on.

“We moved the ball really well in the second half, so I think that definitely impacted how we played, and we hit some open 3s. That was great.”

Rifenburg – who finished with 15 points, six rebounds, two steals and two blocks – drained a trey off a feed from Briggs with 5:33 left in the third quarter. That was the start of a 22-2 run which Briggs capped with a pair of inside buckets to extend the lead to 50-28.

Kilbride was especially pleased with his team’s defensive effort. The RedHawks made just five baskets in the second half, two of which were 3-pointers by Caroline Flynn, who led Marist with 15 points.

“I think our defense has been outstanding,” said Kilbride, who won the tournament for the second straight year. “I think this has been the best defensive team I’ve had.

“It’s not that we’ve got one individual who is amazing. It’s that all of them are.”