All Caps DEFENSE

That happens sometimes, of course, in the fast-paced game of basketball where the margin for error is all-too-often razor-thin.

 

There’s a great remedy, though, that can change the course of the action when that maddening leather sphere roughly nine inches in diameter won’t fit easily through an 18-inch hoop, as the math suggests it should.

 

Defense. Relentless defense. Eye-of-the-tiger defense. All caps DEFENSE.

 

Such was the formula that propelled Collegiate to a 41-23 victory over the Central Virginia Home School Athletic Association Patriots Tuesday night.

 

After falling behind early, then taking a 9-8 lead after a quarter when Kyla Coffey hit a free throw at 0:26.5, the Cougars intensified their trademark man-to-man which created short-range offensive opportunities and limited the visitors to 15 points the rest of the way.

 

Indeed, a sequence of fleeced passes, flick-of-the-wrist steals, 30-second-time-clock violations, and passing-lane deflections created 24 turnovers that took the well-coached and usually fluid Patriots out of their offensive rhythm.

 

“The beginning of the game was a little bit slow, but then we started pressuring the ball more on defense and denying that first pass in,” said senior co-captain Amani Kimball-McKavish, a four-year starter at guard who contributed 16 points, seven rebounds, six steals, and an assist. “Our defense leads our offense. That showed tonight, for sure.”

 

The Cougars opened the second quarter with eight unanswered points.  At 6:05, Abby Craig drained a 3-pointer from the left wing off a pass from sophomore point guard Lily Berger.  At 5:40, Ellie Smith threaded her way through the paint and banked a layup off the glass. At 4:25, Berger sank a 3-ball from the right wing to put the Cougars up 17-8, at which point Patriots coach Crystal Goad called time to settle her team.

 

A moment later, Hannah Young scored from inside to cut the visitors’ deficit to 17-10, but a stickback by Smith and, in the final minute, a layup by Kimball-McKavish and a pair of free throws by Addison Thompson sent the Cougars into the break up 23-12.

 

“It had a lot to do with our energy on defense,” Kimball-McKavish said of her squad’s 14-4 second quarter. “We used our defense to our advantage. That led to our fast break. Our guards did a really good job running wide on the offensive end, so once we got those turnovers, we were able to convert to points.”

 

Kimball-McKavish hit a 3-pointer from the left wing 30 seconds into the third quarter, Thompson scored on a layup off a pass from Smith at 6:42, and a stickback by Coffey at 6:00 put the Cougars up 30-14.

 

“We have the same set man offense that we play,” said Smith, a senior forward and co-captain who finished with 10 points, two rebounds, two steals, and two assists. “With the (inception of the) shot clock, it’s been a little difficult this year because it takes us a few seconds to get into the groove and set it up. Today, we didn’t struggle with that as much. We were getting a lot of fast-break opportunities off the steals, so our offense ran a lot smoother.”

 

The plucky Patriots closed to 32-21 in the final minute, but Kimball-McKavish’s layup at the buzzer off a pass from Smith sent the Cougars into the final period up 34-21.

 

They allowed the visitors just a single bucket – a layup by Young at 6:45 – the rest of the way.

 

“Our team is very good at seeing the open opportunities and passing the ball,” Smith said. “Usually, we have Lily Berger, our point guard, bring it up the court, and two of our guards sealing off the defender to get open for the entry pass.  That calms the team down off the fast break and gets us rolling.”

 

The Cougars connected on 17-of-56 shots and recorded 15 steals and 11 assists. They held CVHAA to 11-for-38 shooting. The Patriots finished with a 44-36 rebounding advantage.

 

“Central Virginia is always a tough, gritty team,” said Collegiate coach Rives Fleming. “I really like the way they play. It’s usually a really close game. Tonight, we ran our fast break pretty well. The constant pressure of doing that wore them out a little bit. We weren’t shooting the ball as well as we could, so we had to manufacture some shots. It wasn’t pretty basketball, but we were the aggressors, and that made a difference.”

  ~Weldon Bradshaw

 

CVHAA……….8   4   9   2  - 23

Collegiate…..9   14   11   7   - 41

CVHAA (5-4)—Young 10, Edwards 4, Brown 0, Kernstine 0, Brindle 0, E. Haskins 4, Whitaker 2, Leboff 1, M. Haskins 0, Mitchell 2. Totals: 11  1-5 – 23.

Collegiate (3-6) – Dubose 0, Craig 3, Fleming 0, Smith 10, Hester 0, Gross 0, Kimball-McKavish 16, Berger 3, Thompson 4, Shield 0, Coffey 5, Allen 0. Totals: 17  3-14  41.

3-pt. goals: Col – Craig, Kimball-McKavish, Berger.