Defense fuels Central women’s basketball win
PELLA—Even when the Central College women’s basketball team’s offense was in need of a jump start in the early going Wednesday, the defense was in high gear and eventually carried the Dutch to a 73-57 win over Grinnell College Wednesday.
Central generated just nine points in the game’s first 9 minutes but the persistent defensive effort set the stage for a 23-point second quarter that put the Dutch firmly in control at intermission 37-27.
“We were speeding them up in the full court and then once we got them in the half court, I thought we did a much better job of talking and keeping them in front of us,” coach Moran Lonning said. “We gave up some open threes but I thought we did a much better job than against Cornell (a 77-66 loss Saturday) of having a hand up and closing out.”
It was a balanced effort for the Dutch, who eventually heated up enough to shoot 47.1% from the field in the fourth quarter while hitting 35.5% for the night. Sophomore guard Abby Johnson (sophomore, Ankeny) had 14 points, seven rebounds and four steals while sophomore guard Cally Gibbs (Grinnell, Lynnville-Sully HS) added 12 points and Kassidi Steel (junior, New Sharon, North Mahaska HS) had 11. Forward Kaylee Weber (sophomore, Sigourney) had a game-high eight rebounds while freshman guard Jasmyn Williams (Denver, Colo., Arvada West HS) passed out six assists and sophomore guard Hannah Dau (Paullina, South O’Brien HS) had four.
Central made 12 steals and held Grinnell to 0-16 shooting behind the 3-point line while hitting on 11 of its threes. Lonning was confident the shots would start falling for the Dutch.
“We put in the time that I know, statistically, the next one’s going in, so I want them to keep shooting and I want them ready to shoot,” she said. “I think at the start of the game, the ball is flying out of our hands a little too fast, so we’re just trying to settle in offensively but keep that same high pace defensively.”
It’s a full-throttle, high-energy style of play that Lonning has installed and she said she can see her young players’ belief growing that persistence will pay off.
“I think we were lucky to have had a couple scrimmages for them to really understand that, hey, this is a long game and we want to be the ones wearing the other team out,” she said. “I feel like they are buying into that.”
The offensive efficiency is surging as well.
“I loved our 20 assists, that’s something we haven’t had yet this year,” Lonning said. “We took care of the ball much better, too.”
Central committed only 13 turnovers.
Guard Kelsea Hurley (senior, Scottsdale, Ariz., Desert Mountain HS) had nine points, six rebounds and three assists, but missed her first free throw of the night. That was her first misfire since Feb. 16 last season, giving her a streak of 23 in a row that tied a school record set by former Division III player of the year Emilie Hanson March 2-Nov. 29, 1994. Hurley already started her next streak, hitting her three subsequent free throw tries.
Central hits the road for its next four games, starting with a non-conference contest next Tuesday in Jacksonville, Illinois against Illinois College at 5:30 p.m. The Lady Blues took a 0-2 record into a Wednesday night game with Greenville University (Ill.).
But Lonning is first eager to see her junior varsity players in their first contest against Grand View University Thursday at 7 p.m. at P.H. Kuyper Gym.
“It’s hard to just practice and practice without a game so I’m excited to get a lot of players some minutes,” she said.
