Employees Picture / Brian Yauger Howland's Alyssa Massucci drives to the basket within the second half of Saturday's contest.
HOWLAND — West Department overcame a sluggish first half to beat Howland, 43-39, in one of many Warriors' remaining checks earlier than the postseason begins.
“It's not unhealthy to have a recreation like this proper earlier than the event” West Department coach Walt DeShields mentioned. “There's a purpose we schedule these groups, particularly Howland. They’re having an excellent season and have a number of seniors. This was their final common season (house recreation) and we knew they might come to us. It was a really bodily recreation. Within the first half, they only rebounded off the ball and we couldn't get a board to save lots of our lives. We should always have performed a a lot better job of this.
“We received off to a very good begin within the first quarter, however then they constructed that lead on being extra aggressive than us. They received to the foul line. They had been heading in the direction of us. They had been getting offensive rebounds, rebounds, and we weren't doing something to cease them.”
With out star guard Sophia Gregory for a lot of the first half as a result of foul bother, the Warriors wanted all fingers on deck — they usually received them.
Freshmen Ellie Tucker and Audrey Eaton every relished the event when their numbers had been known as.
Eaton led the crew with 11 factors. When Eaton took over, it allowed West Department to claw its means again into the sport, trailing simply 21-18 at halftime.
“We received into foul bother and stuff, however then there was some extent there, late within the second quarter, our two freshmen, Ellie Tucker and Audrey Eaton, made some performs there and received to the road of foul.” DeShields mentioned. “Then we lastly determined we had been going to go to the basket a bit bit stronger, and that introduced us into the locker room at halftime with extra confidence with simply three as an alternative of 9 or 10.”
With that added confidence, West Department slowly gained increasingly more management of the sport, ultimately taking the lead earlier than the tip of the third.
The momentum continued into the fourth because the Warriors picked up the win to maneuver to 19-2 on the season.
“I simply suppose we turned it over (within the second half)” DeShields mentioned. “And the explanation we turned it over is as a result of we had been extra aggressive attending to the basket. Now I'd wish to see extra foul pictures made. … However being extra aggressive on the boards and limiting them to 1 shot within the second half, we received much more rebounds in the event you observed and we didn't give them second and third probabilities. That constructed our lead within the second half after which we needed to cling on to beat a very good basketball crew.”
Even when Gregory was on the ground, the Youngstown State commit was effectively restricted by the Tigers.
It's no simple process to restrict Gregory, however Howland discovered a means.
“Consciousness of the court docket and understanding the place it’s always,” Tigers coach Aaron Kilos mentioned of their isolation technique. “She begins, so somebody has to come back via and double her each time. There have been a few instances right here within the fourth quarter, I want we doubled up sooner, I used to be screaming like a freaking maniac. The ladies didn't fairly reply the best way we wished them to reply, however general, I can't complain about their effort.”
The loss snaps a two-game profitable streak for Howland (15-6), which ends the 12 months with rival Austintown Fitch. The groups met in late January, so the sport continues to be recent in Howland's thoughts.
With the second spherical looming, the best way the Tigers performed Saturday is an ideal blueprint.
“If we play like that in opposition to Fitch, will probably be good.” Kilos mentioned. “It's about protection. I assumed we performed fairly effectively defensively. We simply couldn't get the ball via the online a couple of instances. A couple of bunnies right here and there and the free throws weren't the place we would have liked them to be.”
West Department ends its common season at house in opposition to Girard.