Edwardsville jumped out to a 21-7 first quarter lead on their home floor Tuesday and never eased up, beating the Lady Kahoks 70-18.
Gabby Morgan rises above Edwardsville defenders to take a shot on Jan. 14, 2014
The Tigers (6-0 Southwestern Conference, 15-0), ranked 3rd in the state, started the game with a press that forced seven first quarter turnovers. Saint Louis University recruit Aalyah Covington took advantage to score eight of her game-high 21 points in the quarter.
Collinsville Head Coach Lori Billy said the Tigers do not pull any punches with their game plan. “They are going to tell you ‘here it is, come out and stop us,'” Billy said.
Julie Scheiter and the Collinsville defense guarded Tennessee recruit Kortney Dunbar well in the first quarter, holding her to a three points on 1-3 from beyond the arc. The 6-foot-1 Dunbar came to life when the 5-foot-11 Scheiter took a breather and was replaced by Carlee Mahan, who gives away eight inches to Dunbar.
“Carlee plays hard, defensively she’s amazing,” Billy said. “But the size difference matters.”
Dunbar muscled her way to eight of her 19 points in the second quarter. Collinsville (2-5 SWC, 4-9) scored only four points in the second quarter. They fared worse in the fourth, when they failed to make the scoreboard change.
The Lady Kahoks shot 7-24 from the floor Tuesday, including 0-11 from 3-point territory.
“Offensively we didn’t score the way we thought we could. We missed way more than I thought we would,” Billy said. “We got the ball inside, but we just couldn’t get the ball to go down.”
The Tigers were 31-51 from the floor and 3-7 from beyond the arc.
Despite the large margin of defeat, Billy said there are lessons her young team can take from the game.
“This is an example of what we’ve got to do to get there (to the next level),” Billy said. “Our kids play hard. I don’t think it’s a lack of effort with these kids, ever. I think it’s a matter of being confident and comfortable with they can do.”
Scoring for Collinsville were: Buettner-8, Smith-5, Brady-3, Thompson-2
The Lady Kahoks travel to Belleville West for a 7:30 p.m. start Thursday against the Maroons.
