BLOOMINGTON -- A steal by Mercedes Griffin.
A steal by Nicosia Henry.
A steal by Satavia Taylor.
Three possessions into Monday night's Class 4A Illinois Wesleyan University Supersectional between the Bolingbrook High School girls basketball team and Edwardsville established how the Raiders would earn their fifth straight Final Four appearance.
It was, simply, a steal.
"You know, for the past couple of games, we haven't been getting hyped up at the beginning," said Taylor, the senior forward and Loyola University signee. "So, we came out this game really intense, and we had an intense, energetic start."
With the energy normally found in a stockpile of Red Bull, Bolingbrook rode a game-high 20 points and 6 rebounds by freshman forward/guard Morgan Tuck and 14 points, 7 assists, 5 rebounds and 3 steals from sophomore guard Ariel Massengale for a 59-41 victory at the Shirk Center.
The spry Taylor tallied 8 points and sophomore guard/forward Taylor Tuck totaled 7 points, 3 rebounds and 2 assists for the Raiders, who will take the two-mile trip from Bloomington to Normal for a 6:30 Friday night tipoff at Illinois State's Redbird Arena against Wheeling (32-1).
Bolingbrook (23-4) -- with all four losses to out-of-state teams and ranked seventh in the latest Associated Press poll -- boosted its winning streak to 13 straight and clinched a fifth consecutive state trophy after placing fourth, first, second and second in the past four winters.
Wearing their white-and-red uniforms, the Raiders were a swarming sea of trapping hands, arms and legs to Edwardsville (31-3), which entered third in the AP poll but saw its nine-game winning streak snapped by virtue of a 12-3 first-quarter run that made a 9-2 deficit into a 21-5 rout.
Still, after steals by junior forwards Griffin (6 points, 2 rebounds) and Henry (3 rebounds) and Taylor, Bolingbrook owned a 6-0 lead the Raiders never relinquished and Edwardsville rarely could staunch the wind in the sails.
It was, basically, a breeze.
"Yes, we finally we came out fast and quick, something we haven't done in a long time, but what a perfect time to do it," Bolingbrook coach Anthony Smith said. "Hopefully, we can keep it going for two more games, and I would rather start with a couple of defensive stops. It was perfect for us."
"It's very key to have a great beginning," Griffin said. "You can get it going and get a good start to the game. It was great to come off the steals and keep the team hyped. Lately, we haven't been coming out with such great starts, and this game it really made a big difference."
Needing no adjustment to the college floor, Bolingbrook began with a 4-0 lead as Griffin turned her own steal into a left-handed layup. After a steal by Henry went for naught, Massengale's halfcourt takeaway and feed to Taylor for a baseline jumper forced a Tiger timeout at 6:37 left.
After a power drive by Massengale, Griffin got on the ground for an offensive rebound and Massengale converted it into a three from the top of the key for a 9-2 edge with 4:23 left in the first quarter. Senior guard Candace Nevels' nasty, can't-stop-this lane drive high off the backboard pushed the Raiders ahead 11-5.
Within 44 seconds, Massengale followed with another 3-pointer and then gained a steal off the halfcourt trap for a layup and a 16-5 lead with 2:37 left. Nevels' steal and dish unleashed Morgan Tuck for a tissue-soft banker and Taylor Tuck sank a corner three for a 21-5 gap at 1:11.
"Our main goal was to come out and have a good start because during the regular season, our starts haven't been the greatest," Massengale said. "I think we did a good job of that."
While Massengale's pair of free throws with 36.6 seconds remaining gave Bolingbrook a 23-9 lead at the break, the Raiders were not done. Griffin's get-up-and-go drive built a 25-9 advantage only 1:04 into the second quarter. Morgan Tuck's putback provided a 27-12 lead at 6:21 left.
Again, a steal by Morgan Tuck became a baseball-pass outlet to Griffin for a 29-12 cushion. Although the tempo slowed to a crawl, Tuck's lane jumper and subsequent banker from her sister Taylor inched it 33-15. Tuck cashed in Massengale's beaut at 34.4 seconds for a 35-15 halftime lead.
By halftime, Massengale had 12 points on 4-of-6 shooting. She also compiled 3 assists and 3 steals. Morgan Tuck shot 5-of-10 for 10 points and added 4 rebounds. The Raiders coaxed 18 turnovers, shooting 62.5 percent (15-of-24) and holding the Tigers to 33.3 percent (6-of-18).
"We have some really, really talented kids," Smith said. "These kids are athletic, fast and strong. Our thoroughbreds showed up ready to play."
"I think each person takes up the same amount," Morgan Tuck said of the postseason pressure. "It's not just one person and if that one person does do it for our team, we're not going to win. I think each person feels the same amount and each person knows how important they are to the team."
Three minutes and 27 seconds into the third quarter, a teeming Bolingbrook jumped on top 41-19 via Taylor's putback, Tuck's slice-and-dice lane jumper and Taylor's baseline jumper. Edwardsville closed within 41-25 before Massengale's baseline drive helped the Raiders settle at a 43-27 lead for the fourth.
"We stayed under control," Griffin said. "We had the lead and we wanted to keep it. All we had to do was stay poised."
"We all came together as a team," Massengale said. "We know what our roles are and what we have to do, and we all went out there and did what had to do to get the win."
Feisty sophomore guard Falon Edwards kicked off the fourth quarter with a third-chance putback for a 45-27 lead. Tuck's spin-o-rama, fadeaway banker from the block and Taylor's weak-side banker from Henry kept the Raiders in protect mode with a 49-31 lead at 5:26 left.
Back-to-back Morgan Tuck lane bankers and a smooth baseline banker by Taylor Tuck took Bolingbrook to a 55-36 lead with 1:28 remaining. Morgan Tuck scored on a perfect pass by Massengale with 55.9 seconds left for a 57-38 lead, sparking Smith to call timeout.
It was, essentially, over.
"Working together on defense, rotating, reading each other and talking on defense really got us started," Taylor said. "The driving lanes for us were there and we kept giving up the ball and scoring."
That scoring seemed much easier than usual because Bolingbrook shot 63.2 percent (27-of-43) to Edwardsville's 48.6 (18-of-37). Morgan Tuck shot 10-of-17, Massengale hit 5-of-8, Taylor landed 4-of-6 and Griffin and Taylor Tuck each connected on 3-of-4 to grease the wheels.
Now, it is down to this.
"Two more games," Taylor said. "Two more."
"I'm very excited," Tuck said. "I couldn't wait to play this game. I wanted to get everybody off the court from the first game (Peoria Richwood's 56-47 win over Hillcrest in a 3A supersectional) so we could get started."
Said a nodding Massengale: "Our goal, since Day 1, has been to win state."
Cell Phone Alerts
Facebook App
Contact Us
Terms of Use
Privacy Policy
Advertise With Us
About Our Ads
Close
Community Login
You've successfully logged in to the Sun-Times Media Community, click the close button to return to browsing.
Font Size
Email
Bookmark
Black Text
