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Entering Thursday night on a six-game winning streak, the Whitko girls basketball team welcomed one of its biggest tests of the season to South Whitley in the form of East Noble. Shaking off a sloppy start, the Lady ‘Cats were able to come alive in the second half and pick up an awfully impressive 57-42 win for the team’s seventh in a row.
With two fantastic defenses squaring off, it was no surprise that points came at a premium to begin the game. Ally Brown scored the first four points of the game for Whitko, the result of two inside baskets over the course of the opening two minutes. It took the Lady Knights a bit longer than that to get on the board, but the visitors responded with seven straight over the next three minutes to take their first lead.
Back-to-back threes by the Stonebreaker sisters, Reese and Jayma, put the Lady ‘Cats back in front after a long dry spell. Outside of a few quick spurts, both sides were having difficulty staying in a rhythm. Each team was doing a great job defending its basket, and the space required to put up a good look was rare to see.
After eight minutes of action, the home side held onto a 10-9 advantage. The game of runs continued, as six straight by East Noble flipped the lead once more. The Lady Knights were beginning to operate much more efficiently on offense, breaking through the ferocity of the Lady ‘Cat defense by making the extra pass at the opportune time.
On the other end, Whitko was struggling to get out of its own way. More possessions were ending with a pass going out of bounds than a shot being put up. The visitors were using this to their advantage, and the run extended well into the second quarter. Four minutes into the period, the Lady ‘Cats had managed just two points and now trailed by nine.
“I thought we started off really sloppy tonight,” Whitko head coach Justin Jordan said. “We had a terrible practice yesterday and it definitely carried into today. But I thought once we got past that bad stretch, we really started to gel and play well.”
Kyra Lowe gave the home side a bit of a spark in the final minutes before the half, scoring six points and drawing a charge as well. On the other end, the Whitko defense had picked it back up and held East Noble to just three points over the final four minutes of the period. A buzzer-beating layup by Reese Stonebreaker capped off an 8-1 run to end the half and make it a two-point game heading into the break.
Junior Ally Brown of Whitko blocks the shot attempt of East Noble's Averi Amstutz during the third quarter...Nieter
It took two and a half minutes for the first home field goal in the third quarter, which allowed the visitors to extend their lead back up to six for a moment. The first points seemed to open the floodgates, as the Lady ‘Cats quickly went on a 5-0 run that resulted in a timeout call by their opponent.
The surge continued after the quick break, as freshman Jules Leffers put Whitko back in front for the first time in almost 15 minutes of game time. After drawing an offensive foul on the other end, Jayma Stonebreaker, who had not scored since the opening period, hit her second three of the night to put the home side up by four.
“We just needed to start stacking some stops and eventually the ball was going to start going in the hoop,” Jordan said. “This group has been through a lot and knows not to put their heads down.”
The two sides spent the rest of the quarter trading baskets for the most part. A couple of big shots by Reese put the seniors in double figures and kept her team in front. Two made free throws by the Lady Knights in the closing seconds set up a fantastic finish, with Whitko leading by just one.
Jayma joined her sister with a pair of triples in the opening minute of the fourth quarter to give her 12. As the final period got going, the fresher team appeared to be the home side. The Lady ‘Cats were pushing the action whenever they got their hands on the ball, consistently winning the 50-50 battles and turning the extra shots into points. Even still, East Noble was able to do enough offensively to continue hanging around. Midway through the quarter, it was a four-point game.
“Really liked our intensity down the stretch tonight. We were able to keep stacking stops and it really turned things in our favor,” Jordan said.
With time running out, Whitko began to take the air out of the basketball. Nearly 90 seconds came off the clock on just one possession for the home side, and moments after the Lady Knights got the ball back, they quickly turned it over. Soon, a little over two minutes remained and the Lady ‘Cats had a five-point lead and possession once more after a technical foul.
Coming out of a timeout, a perfectly executed play to Brown made it a seven-point game. After another lost possession for the visitors, East Noble was beginning to play the foul game. With 90 seconds left in the game, the home side was in the bonus and would be shooting free throws the rest of the way.
With just over a minute left in the game, a steal and score by Lowe made it an eleven-point advantage and sealed the deal. Even with the result now determined, the Lady ‘Cats stayed tenacious on the defensive end, putting the stamp on the victory by forcing two more turnovers before the final buzzer sounded.
Whitko (8-1) is at Lewis Cass on Saturday.
