By Justin Sokeland
WBIW.com
BLOOMINGTON – Mysteriously, Bedford North Lawrence blew out its first three opponents and dropped two spots in the Class 4A rankings. Huh? Not that polls mean anything, the votes represent little more than opinions. Perhaps the voters need to see if they can dribble up the court against the most tenacious defense BNL has ever unleashed.
Or guard Chloe Spreen when she’s in All-American mode.
Bloomington South got the full-throttle, high-octane attack from the Stars. If the Panthers had a vote, bet there’s no question about that count and result. On one end, the South turnovers were lethal, on the other Spreen was sensational and unstoppable. That combination produced another mercy-rule runaway.
Spreen, a destructive hurricane in the lane, exploded for a career-high 35 points, and BNL’s relentless pressure forced 33 South turnovers as the No.4 Stars rumbled to a 61-27 victory on Tuesday night. Karsyn Norman added 15 points as BNL (4-0) won for the 12th straight time in the series and added another victim in its devastating wake.
Spreen seemed to take the poll slippage personal. Disrespect? Take that. She gashed holes in South’s interior defense, snatched offensive rebounds, swished perimeter jumpers. She blamed the new ranking on BNL’s failure to “pass the look test. Some people can underestimate us, when we walk in, as far as height and everything,” she said. And there’s nothing intimidating about the Stars – until the fury is unchained. Take an exit poll among the Panthers.
Like the great scorers, Spreen had no idea of her final total until she asked on her way out of the gymnasium. Her coach also didn’t know. “I knew it was a bunch,” Jeff Allen said. “She plays really hard. That’s the one thing, everyone has strong points and weak points. That kid plays so hard. She makes up for a lot, when you have that type of effort.”
Spreen and Norman got the Stars rolling early, combining for 17 of the 19 first-quarter points. Then Spreen shifted into overdrive. Jumper from the lane, a baseline drive, a soft 6-footer in the paint, and finally a crackling behind-the-back slash into the lane – degree of difficulty, 3.0 – for a bucket and a 30-15 lead at the half.
Despite all those highlights, South (1-2) wasn’t dead yet. The Stars allowed them to cling by shooting only 10 of 32 from the field in the first half. But South already had 17 turnovers by that point.
“If you can defend and rebound, when the shots aren’t falling, you still have a chance,” Allen said. “That’s what I was taught and I believe it. As long as we can defend, we’ll eventually make shots.
“I liked our effort, we just have to play a little smarter at times. We took some rushed shots when we had the lead. We talk about getting that lead, protecting that lead, expanding that lead. We made some bad decisions. We did a better job of distributing the ball and making better decisions.”
If BNL hit a plateau before halftime, it quickly went downhill from there. Spreen opened the third quarter with back-to-back bombs, Norman popped a corner trey, and Mallory Pride converted a layup off a Norman dash and dish. Two more Spreen breakaways and the lead was 30 at 51-21. Halfway through the fourth, Spreen’s two free throws triggered the mercy rule with the 35-point margin.
Spreen was 12 of 20 from the field, 9 of 10 at the line, and added six boards.
“I was just determined. I was feeling it,” she said. “The intensity of the team, I give them all the credit. They make me feel like we can get going. The energy of the team, it really gets going. When you get out there and play, it just comes. They make plays and get me open. When I get a chance to go, I go.“
South’s Abbie Lucas had 10 points, but the Panthers became the third straight BNL opponent to have more turnovers than shot attempts. BNL’s foes are now averaging 29.8 miscues per game.
“I expect nothing less,” Spreen said. “We just need to keep doing it. We work our butts off in practice on defense, every single practice. We’re always going to play harder than them, we’ll give all our effort. Coach said you can’t teach effort, and that’s what we have.”
BNL, which had 12 offensive rebounds in the first half, got 7 points from Pride. Madisyn Bailey totaled 6 boards.
“I’ve got good basketball players,” Allen said. “They make you look like a good coach. That’s a big part of it.”
The Stars will now prepare for a big weekend, hosting North Central on Friday before opening Hoosier Hills Conference play at Jeffersonville on Saturday.
BEDFORD NL STARS (61)
3s FGs FTs R F Pts
2 Chloe Spreen, f 2-5 12-20 9-10 6 1 35
22 Mallory Pride, f 1-2 3-5 0-0 4 4 7
24 Madisyn Bailey, g 0-0 0-3 1-2 6 2 1
20 Emma Brown, g 0-3 0-4 0-0 1 3 0
21 Karsyn Norman, g 2-7 5-17 3-3 3 1 15
32 Trinidy Bailey 0-0 0-0 0-0 1 1 0
3 Katie Baumgart 0-0 1-2 0-0 0 0 2
50 Emma Crane 0-0 0-0 1-2 1 0 1
12 Tori Nikirk 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0
23 Katie Godlevske 0-1 0-1 0-0 1 1 0
44 Ellie Tillett 0-0 0-1 0-0 0 0 0
Totals 4-18 21-53 14-17 26 13 61
BLOOMINGTON SOUTH PANTHERS (27)
3s FGs FTs R F Pts
33 Abbie Lucas, f 0-1 5-7 0-0 0 4 10
11 Molli Lucas, f 0-0 2-3 0-0 5 1 4
4 Caitlin Heim, f 0-0 2-4 2-2 5 2 6
21 Mya Lawrence, g 0-0 0-2 0-0 1 1 0
3 Carlie Pedersen, g 0-0 0-2 0-0 1 2 0
14 Grace McKay 0-0 1-3 1-2 1 1 3
32 Julia Lashley 0-1 0-2 1-3 3 0 1
22 Violet Hall 1-2 1-4 0-0 2 0 3
1 Kate Barada 0-0 0-0 0-0 1 1 0
24 Daniella Grimes 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0
10 Macy Hays 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0
25 Eva Bryant 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0
Totals 1-4 11-27 4-7 23 12 27
Bedford NL 19 11 22 9 – 61
South 6 9 8 4 – 27
Turnovers – BNL 11, South 33
Field goal percentage – BNL 21-53 (.396); South 11-27 (.407)
Free throw percentage – BNL 14-17 (.823); South 4-7 (.571)
