By Justin Sokeland
WBIW.com
NEW CASTLE – Some things can be counted on. Death and taxes. Great friends. The sun rising in the east. Lottery winners discovering new relatives. Change is inevitable.
Mishawaka Marian’s scouting report for the opening game of the Hall of Fame Classic missed something. Bedford North Lawrence plays fantastic defense? Check. Chloe Spreen can score? Yep. Karsyn Norman is the engine for the machine? Check. Mallory Pride . . . wait, who? The Knights didn’t count on BNL’s slender senior to come up so big.
Pride posted a sensational double-double, Spreen exploded in the second half, and BNL’s python defense suffocated Marian as 4A No.4 BNL powered to an impressive 59-28 victory over the Knights on Thursday. The Star surrendered only two points in the opening 12 minutes and cruised to the championship game as they chase their third Classic title in program history.
Spreen provided the second-half fireworks, but it was Pride who lit the fuse, totaling 17 points and a career-high 16 rebounds. She was the flame in the first half, and BNL’s defense smothered any Marian move while blasting to a 17-2 lead. Pride totaled 12 points and 9 boards as the Stars (14-2) rumbled to a 25-8 advantage at the half. That was the hard work. The rest was easy once Spreen found her groove.
“Did not count on that,” Marian coach Steve Scott said of Pride’s performance. “Not to take anything away from her. If you hold Norman to six points, you think you have a better chance than that. That was definitely a killer.
“The start killed us. You hope to make a couple of shots early, so people don’t start pressing. You fall behind and we were trying to climb out of a hole the rest of the game.”
How solid was BNL’s denial? The Knights (12-3 and ranked No.7 in 3A) got their only basket during the opening drought off an air-ball offensive rebound. From that point, BNL took off with Spreen’s layup (off a Pride offensive board, a common theme), Pride’s own rebound basket, and Spreen’s runout layup off Emma Brown’s steal. When Bailey sliced the lane for a short jumper and the 17-2 lead, the rout was on.
“I was really happy with our defensive effort,” BNL coach Jeff Allen said. “Defense is all heart and understanding. The kids did a great job. You have to rely on your defense to win big games.”
Pride scored BNL’s final eight points to get to halftime, then came Spreen. Fadeaway from the wing. Splash. Steal and drive to the rim. Boom. Another long bomb. Bang. And a final assault on the rim. The Stars led 42-19 at the next break.
Spreen finished with 22 points and hit her final five shots after some sluggish minutes. Norman had only 6 points, but she added 6 assists and did the bulk of the shadowing of Marian star Nevaeh Foster, the Western Kentucky recruit who got 14 points but was only 7 of 22 from the field.
“Karsyn is a lock-down defender with her athleticism,” Allen said. “A lot of kids have not seen that kind of athlete. When she has an assignment, and is focused, she does a great job. I don’t think she ever tires. She has a big motor, she’s extremely quick. She can make it difficult for scorers.”
Pride’s double-fisted totals was her second of the season (going with her 10 and 14 boards at Evansville Mater Dei). She had nine offensive boards as BNL outrebounded the Knights 46-30.
“Some kids just have a nose for the basketball around the rim,” Allen said. “I played with one in college (Tyrone Corbin at DePaul). He just knew where the ball was coming off. And that’s Mal. She’s not real big, she just has a feel for where the ball is coming off, goes and gets it. Another kid with a big motor.”
Part of her secret is her constant movement. Perhaps she doesn’t count on a shot being made (she smiled and shook her head on that remark), although BNL was a little frigid again (4 of 16 from deep) until Spreen heated up.
“I wouldn’t say that,” Pride said. “I wasn’t getting blocked out. And I’m decent at reading the ball, just in the right place at the right time.
“Our guards are very good at penetrating, kicking the ball to me. They see me every time. The start was what we’ve been talking about. We’ve been down since the Noblesville game, we needed something to pick us up. Our energy was better.”
Noblesville 62, East Central 37 – BNL will face a rematch with Noblesville after the Millers (12-3) handled East Central in the second game of the first round.
The Millers bounced back from an 18-10 deficit after the first quarter and allowed only two points in the second. Meredith Tippner had 18 points, Kaitlyn Shoemaker added 17, and Reagan Wilson totaled 10 as Noblesville advanced to face the Stars for the second time in a week. The Millers topped BNL 54-44 in the Pete Pritchett Limestone Classic.
Laney Baker had 17 points for East Central (11-6). Josie Trabel was limited to 8 points but added 16 rebounds. The Trojans were guilty of 27 turnovers.
BEDFORD NL STARS (59)
3s FGs FTs R F Pts
2 Chloe Spreen, f 2-2 8-15 4-6 6 2 22
22 Mallory Pride, f 0-0 7-10 3-4 16 2 17
24 Madisyn Bailey, g 0-2 3-6 2-2 5 0 8
20 Emma Brown, g 1-6 1-8 0-0 3 1 3
21 Karsyn Norman, g 0-4 3-13 0-0 3 1 6
3 Katie Baumgart 0-0 0-0 0-0 1 0 0
32 Trinidy Bailey 0-1 0-2 0-0 1 1 0
12 Tori Nikirk 0-0 0-1 0-0 1 0 0
50 Emma Crane 0-0 0-0 0-0 2 0 0
23 Katie Godlevske 1-1 1-1 0-0 1 0 3
40 Bella Jackson 0-0 0-1 0-0 2 0 0
44 Ellie Tillett 0-0 0-2 0-0 0 0 0
11 Haleigh Canada 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0
Totals 4-16 23-59 9-12 46 7 59
MISHAWAKA MARIAN KNIGHTS (28)
3s FGs FTs R F Pts
23 Shayla Alexander, f 0-6 2-13 0-0 2 5 4
25 Christa Porter, f 0-0 0-3 1-2 11 3 1
14 Nevaeh Foster, g 0-7 7-22 0-1 9 3 14
22 Aliyah Hershberger, g 1-6 3-9 2-2 1 1 9
10 Grace O’Hara, g 0-2 0-2 0-0 1 0 0
44 Samantha Gruber 0-0 0-2 0-0 3 1 0
5 Sydney McIntee 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0
3 Nadalyn Gerwels 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0
42 Abilina Dubree 0-0 0-1 0-0 0 0 0
24 Madison Myers 0-0 0-0 0-0 1 0 0
Totals 1-21 12-52 3-5 30 13 28
Bedford NL 15 10 17 17 – 59
Mishawaka Marian 2 6 11 9 – 28
Turnovers – BNL 7, Marian 12
Field goal percentage – BNL 23-59 (.390); Marian 12-52 (.231)
Free throw percentage – BNL 9-12 (.750); Marian 3-5 (.600)
NOBLESVILLE 62, EAST CENTRAL 37
Noblesville (12-3) – Meredith Tippner 18, Kaitlyn Shoemaker 17, Brooklyn Ely 6, Reagan Wilson 10, Ava Shoemaker 4, Kate Rollins 2, C.C. Quigley 5.
East Central (11-6) – Emily Klem 2, Josie Trabel 8, Addy Arnult 9, Laney Baker 17, Anna Black 1.
