Girls basketball: Crown Point uses defense to net ‘ugly’ win

Updated: January 7, 2012 12:02AM

CROWN POINT — Annie Equihua is still waiting patiently for her team to put every phase of its game together on the same night.

In Friday night’s 43-34 Duneland Athletic Conference win over Chesterton, Crown Point’s coach watched her Bulldogs play tough, stingy defense, but watched them struggle offensively.

Crown Point’s defense, coupled with some poor shooting by the Trojans (4-8, 2-7) who made only 25 percent of their shots — including just 21.1 percent in the second half — proved to be the difference for the Bulldogs.

“Defensively, I thought we did very well,’’ Equihua said. “Offensively, though, we didn’t handle their pressure well at all. It was an ugly game tonight. We’ve played ugly and lost before, so I’ll play ugly and take the win. It feels much better to play ugly and win.’’

Senior Michaela Prough scored 12 points, grabbed six rebounds and added a pair of assists to lead CP (9-6, 6-3).

“Michaela played great,’’ Equihua said. “She finally played like Michaela tonight. She’s been playing outside the perimeter more this year than she has before. It’s taken time for her to get used to that. I thought she rebounded well, was aggressive offensively and defensively. She came to play.’’

Kendall Brown scored 10 points and had four assists, two rebounds, a block and a steal for CP, while Courtney Kvachkoff and Alexis Joseph each had eight points. Joseph also had a game-high seven rebounds.

“It was a little tough out there tonight, but we made it work,’’ said Prough, who will take her skills to Evansville next fall. “We didn’t want to speed up the game tonight. We wanted to control the tempo. We wanted to slow it down, take our time and look for good shots. I think the key for us was our defense. I think the pressure we put on them increased the tempo for them and made it harder for them to get into their offense.’’

After leading 11-10 after the first quarter, the Trojans struggled offensively.

Chesterton’s Jocelyn Lipscomb, who led all scorers with 14 points, made the team’s only basket — a three-pointer — in the second period as the Trojans scored only five points in the quarter and trailed 21-16 at the break.

The Trojans, who went 15:13 between baskets, totaled only three points in the third quarter — all free throws by Lindsay Gorman, who finished with 12 points.

“We got the ball to the basket I don’t know how many times, but there was no fouls, no baskets, and apparently no contact,’’ said Chesterton coach Jack Campbell, shaking his head. “Physically, inside, we don’t have the height to contend with them. They’re bigger than us and they’re stronger than us, but you can’t just say to your kids: ‘We can’t do anything against them.’ We have to get in there and try to rebound. We had all kinds of wide open shots and we didn’t hit them. We’re not the kind of team that can miss those kinds of shots.

“We just have to keep working. It’s not like we’re not trying, or not giving effort. We just have to keep plugging away.’’

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