Crothersville girls bounce back with big win

0

CROTHERVILLE

Crothersville girls basketball coach Kevin Hensley said his team needed a win to have something to celebrate after recently losing some close games.

The Tigers had dropped four straight games, with three of those losses decided by only a combined eight points, before earning a dominating 83-22 victory against the Cannelton (3-14) at home Friday evening in front of an energetic crowd.

The Tigers pounced early as they wrapped up the first quarter with a 19-6 lead. That lead was built off solid defense, capitalizing off turnovers and sharp shooting by the Tigers.

Tigers junior Katrina Christian accounted for 13 points and three steals alone in the first quarter. The team forced eight turnovers collectively in the first quarter alone.

The second quarter was equally dominant by the Tigers. The Tigers outscored the Bulldogs 22-2 in the second quarter. Tigers junior Alexis Adair led the team in the second quarter with 10 points, six of which were scored consecutively.

The Tigers ended the half with an impressive pass around the perimeter from Adair to sophomore Nikki Hickman to sophomore Kalynda Hoevener, who made a jump shot to bring the score 41-8 in favor of the Tigers.

The Bulldogs started the third quarter with a jump shot made by Davis, but the Tigers continued to dominate as they outscored their opponent 33-6 in the third to bring the score to 74-14. Thirty-three was the most the Tigers would score in one quarter throughout the game.

Freshman Piper Hensley led the team in the third quarter with eight points off of two 3-point shots and two made free throws.

Adair also recorded seven points in the third, while freshman Maddie Riley had six points.

The Tigers slowed the pace of the game in the fourth quarter and were outscored 8-6 by the Bulldogs. The entire Bulldogs team seemed to give up at the instruction of their coach, Mike Garrett, who told his team to give up the ball to the Tigers. Garrett also had his team hold the ball for the remaining 25 seconds instead of scoring.

Hensley said the win will help the team’s confidence after dropping those four games.

“We took a few tough losses, and we needed a win to get us back on that mentality where we have our confidence back,” he said. “I think it helps a lot — especially for the bench — because we are trying to get them to pick up their game.”

Hensley said the benefit of leading by a large margin early is that players coming off the bench can get more experience on the court.

“I think it helps them because it gives them experience to where if you need them in a game situation or in a crucial situation, tight game, they can do the job.”

The Tigers (8-7) will travel to Southern Athletic Conference foe Lanesville today.

Tigers boys also earn win

The Crothersville Tigers boys team tipped off following the girls game and their game was just as dominant, as they defeated the Bulldogs 81-37.The game started very fast-paced as both teams moved the ball quickly and both turned the ball over.The first quarter featured a close match up as the Tigers only led 12-8 at the end of the quarter. Crothersville freshman Lane Wienhorst scored five points in the first quarter.

Wienhorst had a huge game as he led the Tigers with career-high 26 points.

The Tigers established the flow of the game in the second quarter as they outscored the Bulldogs 25-10 to bring the score to 37-18 at the break.

The Tigers commanded the second half as they outscored the Bulldogs 23-10 in the third quarter and 21-9 in the closing quarter.

Crothersville boys coach Greg Kilgore said after the game his team struggled to set the tempo in the first quarter but that he was pleased when they began to run away with the game.

“We kind of really played the ball in their hand in the first quarter,” he said. “The game could have — at that point — could have remained close, but in the second quarter I told the guys we needed to up the tempo, and I brought some guys off the bench that provided some energy.”

Kilgore was referring to senior Codi McDonald, who came off the bench and provided the Tigers with 13 point.

“He gave us a big lift off the bench, getting a couple steals and threes,” he said. “He had 13 and that’s a career high.”

Kilgore said Wienhorst also contributed in a big way, scoring 26 in only his second start.

“I’ve been starting some of the younger kids, and we’ve been trying to get them more playing time to get more experience,” he said. “Tonight he seemed pretty comfortable.”

The Tigers (2-12) will travel to Southwestern tonight.

No posts to display