Despite struggling offensively, particularly in the second half, McAuley’s intensity on the defensive end was enough to lift the top-seeded Warriors to a 53-45 win over fourth-seeded Rich Hill in the Class 1 District 7 semifinals on Wednesday.
“It’s just all heart,” McAuley coach Mike Howard said about his team’s resiliency in the win. “They’ve faced adversity all year long and they’ve fought through it. They never gave up even when (Rich Hill) cut it down to a one-possession game in the second half. They dug deep, kept their cool and just kept playing.”
DEFENSE WINS GAMES
As the adage goes—it’s not how you start, it’s how you finish. That theme suited the Warriors well against the Tigers. McAuley limited Rich Hill to 13 total points after the four-minute mark in each quarter. The Warriors allowed five points (two field goals) in the final four minutes of the first period, three points (one field goal and a free throw) in the second, three points (one field goal) in the third and two points (two free throws) in the last four minutes of the fourth quarter.
“We know that if our offense isn’t clicking, defense will always keep you in the game,” Howard said. “We really tried to buckle down defensively after that first quarter when we switched to a zone. We tried to pressure them a little bit and keep them off balance. Continuing to switch things up (throughout the rest of the game) really kept them guessing on what we were doing. We played well defensively tonight.”
STUGGLES AT THE STRIPE
McAuley went to the free-throw line 31 times against Rich Hill. Unfortunately, the Warriors converted just eight times from the charity stripe, shooting just above 25 percent for the game. In the second half, McAuley made 6-of-25 shots from the free-throw line (24 percent).
“When you go 8-for-31 from the free-throw line, you’re not going to beat very many teams,” Howard said. “We are very fortunate that our defense kept us in the game because 23 free throws is a lot to miss. That’s 23 points off the board, and if we even make half of those, this game is not even close.”
GAME ACTION
McAuley trailed 10-3 through five and a half minutes of action before changing the momentum with a 11-2 run to close the first quarter with a 14-12 advantage. Gliza Damaso drained a 3-pointer to start the run, with Kloee Williamson pulling down two offensive rebounds for putback scores.
“She is a scrappy player,” Howard said of Williamson’s play to close the first quarter. “She’s a little thing, but she gets in there and battles with them because she’s not scared of the big bodies. I’ve always preached that when a shot goes up, you crash the boards hard. That’s what she did.”
The second period saw three early ties before the Warriors again, like in the opening period, used a strong defensive finish to close the first half on a 12-1 spurt for a 30-19 lead at the intermission.
Williamson knocked down a 3-ball to start the run, with Lily Black scoring inside off the assist from Kennedy DeRuy to push the lead to five. Kayleigh Teeter added a pair of driving scores sandwiched around a 3-pointer from Abbey Cahalan to round out the first-half scoring.
“It was very important,” Howard said about his team’s closing scoring runs in the first two quarters. “It gave us momentum when I felt like we were pretty stagnant and our offense wasn’t clicking for part of the quarter. … Getting those runs at the end of the (first two quarters) gave us the momentum to keep fighting.”
Teeter sank two 3-pointers early in the second half to push McAuley’s lead to 36-22, but Rich Hill answered with eight straight points, including back-to-back three-point plays from Tisha Mackey and Kayden Coonce to trim the Warriors’ margin to 36-30 with 4:10 on the clock, with the lead moving to seven by the start of the fourth quarter.
Rich Hill opened the final eight minutes with a 3-pointer and mid-range jumper from Mackey to cut the Warriors’ lead to one possession, 40-38, with 6:52 left.
With the lead still at two with less than four minutes to play, McAuley got an inside score from Black, who also had several key defensive plays down the stretch, to push the lead to 47-43 with 3:39 on the clock. Teeter earned a steal for a fast-break layup near the three-minute mark for a seven-point cushion.
“I was so proud of her for fighting through her breathing and her asthma,” Howard said of Black’s impact on the game. “She kept playing and came up huge by getting blocks, rebounds and putbacks. She gave us momentum and got the crowd into it with her blocked shots. Those are things we have to have from our role players. She stepped up and did a great job tonight.”
Even with the struggles at the free-throw line prior, the Warriors made enough in crunch time, as Teeter made both attempts with 1:15 left and Damaso made one-of-two charities with 45.4 seconds left to give the Warriors a 53-43 lead and eventual win.
SCORING LEADERS
Teeter led McAuley with a game-high 22 points, including three 3-pointers. Black closed with 10 points, while Williamson finished with eight.
Mackey and Coonce led Rich Hill with 10 points each.
UP NEXT
McAuley will be playing for a district title against second-seeded Hume at 5:30 p.m. on Friday at Lamar. Hume defeated third-seeded Bronaugh 36-30 in the semifinals. The Warriors are seeking their second district title in as many years.
“We are going to shoot free throws for about 30 minutes tomorrow,” Howard said with a laugh when asked about preparation for a chance at his second consecutive district crown. “If we can get to the free-throw line 31 times on Friday, (our free-throw shooting) can’t get any worse. I think we will get better and be successful if we keep attacking and getting to the free-throw line.
“Hume has a good team. They have beaten (Rich Hill) twice already this season. I know they are pretty solid. We just have to prepare and watch some film. We will be ready to go Friday. I have no doubt.”
