HENRYVILLE
A three-way tie between Crothersville, Orleans and Shawe for second place in the Henryville Tipoff Tournament forced the Tigers to play in the third-place game Saturday.
Even though they didn’t get a shot at the trophy, Crothersville (3-1) made the most of its opportunity, posting a 63-45 win against Clarksville for the bronze.
From the start, Tigers sophomore Lacey Hall went on an offensive tear.
The Tigers jumped to a 7-2 lead at the 4:41 mark behind a 3-pointer and layup by Hall and a field goal by sophomore Katrina Christian.
Hall added a pair of baskets and a free throw to score 10 points in the first quarter as the Tigers led 12-7.
The Generals answered early in the second quarter, narrowing the deficit to 12-11 behind two scores from sixth-man Aly Weber.
Weber provided all 12 of the Generals’ points in the second quarter, but Clarksville trailed 24-19 at intermission.
In the second quarter, Crothersville turned the ball over seven times.
The Tigers opened on a 9-0 run to start the third quarter behind three baskets by Christian and another from senior Alexis Adair.
Freshman Piper Hensley downed two 3-pointers to give the Tigers a 43-32 lead after 24 minutes of play.
Opening with a 3-pointer by Hall, Crothersville never looked back as they cruised to the win.
Hall finished with 17 points and 12 rebounds while Christian and Hensley recorded 11 points each.
“Rebounding was a strength — that’s one thing I’ve been preaching on,” Tigers coach Kevin Hensley said. “We have to be a good rebounding team in order to be successful this season. One thing that also stood out was our poor free throw shooting. We missed a ton. However, our rebounding and defense made up for it.”
Tigers senior Abby Jewell also had seven points and 10 rebounds.
Crothersville outrebounded the Generals 37-24 on the day.
The Tigers struggled from the line, making 12 of 26 free throws.
Weber had 17 points and Bailey Sharp chipped in 14 for the Generals.
Coach Hensley was pleased with his team’s aggressive press defense.
“I think it was good that we had enough girls to fight off foul trouble,” Hensley said. “Katrina does a heck of a job defending their best ball handler. We were trying to be as aggressive as we can without fouling. We want to put a lot of pressure on teams and make them turn the ball over if they don’t have ball handlers.
Tuesday, the Generals (2-2) will travel to Crothersville for a rematch.
“We need to keep all our girls focused as a team and not as individuals,” Hensley said. “Sometimes, we get away from that team concept. We can’t think individually.”
Medora earns 1st win
Playing for seventh place, in their fourth game in five days, Medora earned their first win of the season by defeating Irvington Prep 36-32 on Saturday.Medora took an early 10-2 lead in the first quarter, capped by a basket by senior Carley McCammon at 1:18.
Trailing 10-5 after one, the Ravens went on a 6-0 run with points from the free throw line to start the second quarter.
A free throw by Taylor Hunter ended the Raven’s run, as Medora trailed 14-11 with 1:15-mark.
The Hornets managed just three points in the second quarter, trailing 17-13.
McCammon and fellow-senior Jadelyn Dean put the Hornets on their back in the third quarter, combining for eight of the team’s 10 points.
With 1:13 left in the third quarter, the Hornets retook the lead with a basket from sophomore Elexus Morris at 23-22.
Irvington retook the lead at 29-28 in the fourth quarter until Dean nailed a free throw to tie the game with 3:54 left on the clock.
Dean dished an assist to McCammon at 1:30 to give the Hornets the lead.
Medora would manage more free throws than Irvington to close out the game as they escaped with the victory.
Carley McCammon scored a season-high 18 points and Dean managed 15 points and 15 rebounds for the Hornets.
On the boards, Medora outrebounded the Ravens 47-30.
Throughout the game, the Hornets made a point of playing aggressive offense, making 18 of 34 free throws on 27 fouls.
The Raven’s Regina Gibson had a team-high 10 points while Adiah Mickens and Alyssa Bloom recorded seven a piece.
“We struggled to get the temp and style of the game, we just couldn’t get the rotation that we wanted,” coach McCammon said. “They fought through mental toughness the first half. We finally understood the clock was our friend and were able to spread the floor. I felt positive about the mental approach to the game at that point. I thought that our seniors (Dean and McCammon) led us and kept everyone calm.”
Coach McCammon said that the close win was a big confidence booster.
“As a coach, having been here 31 years, it’s vital to get that win,” he said. “Even though they keep working and know they’re doing things right, a win cures a lot of ailments. There aren’t as many sore bodies after today’s win.
“It wasn’t a pretty win, but it was a win — we will take it.”
On Nov. 19, the Hornets (1-3) travel to Bloomington Lighthouse.