Bloom's comeback beats Crete

With his team struggling to score and trailing by five at halftime, Bloom coach Marc Lopez was looking for some senior leadership.

Angenay Williams provided it.

Williams scored 13 of her game-high 17 points in the second half as Bloom rallied for a 46-31 victory over host Crete-Monee Thursday afternoon in the title game of the Warrior Winter Classic.

"I knew they were doubling Bria (Gaines), she's our leading scorer," Williams said. "So coach looked at me and said it was time to step up."

"Angenay stepped up and played like a senior," Lopez said. "She wasn't finishing her shots in the first half, but played much better in the second half."

Bloom (10-5) trailed 19-14 at halftime. But senior guard Tysheka Craft (13 points, six rebounds) scored the first six points of the third quarter to give the Blazing Trojans their first lead of the game. Included in that run was a pair of free throws after Crete-Monee coach Danny Wafford was given a technical.

"The technical turned the momentum in their favor," Wafford said. "But I was a referee for years and I was stunned by the technical. We just made too many turnovers (eight in the third quarter alone) and that killed us."

A layup by Ashley Henry (six points) gave the Warriors one last lead at 21-20, but Williams scored seven points in an 11-0 burst that put Bloom ahead 31-21 with 1:49 left in the third quarter.

The Warriors (6-9) never got closer than eight the rest of the way.

"We just had to be scrappy and take our time in the second half," added Williams, who had seven rebounds. "This whole tournament has been rocky for me, so in the second half I had to take attack and step up."

"We just found it in the second half," Lopez said. "We settled down and played our style of basketball. We were going to quick in the first half."

Gaines, a sophomore, finished with 14 points for the Blazing Trojans, who have won seven straight. Freshman Destiny Harris led Crete-Monee with 12 points, but was limited to four in the second half. Kadidrea Crawford added five points and a game-high 12 boards for the Warriors.

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