Girls Basketball: Neuqua Valley races past Minooka

Updated: December 15, 2011 9:22PM

Neuqua Valley girls basketball coach Mike Williams knows that his team doesn’t have a 6-foot-4 post presence to anchor his team this year.

So the focus of the team is clear. Using speed and depth, the Wildcats have to turn games into track meets.

“Right now, we have to run,” Williams said. “There’s no way around it.”

Neuqua raced up and down the court all night in its dominating 67-40 win over Minooka at the Oswego Holiday Classic. The win earned the Wildcats (10-1) a spot in Saturday’s 6 p.m. title game against the host Panthers.

“We’re going to have to be able to do that,” Williams said of running the Indians out of the gym. “Obviously when we play teams that match up with us speed wise, we’re going to have to play some half-court defense and half-court offense. But pressure right now is the key.”

The Wildcats are extremely deep and quick, so they were able to put fresh bodies on the court in waves to frustrate Minooka (4-8). But early on, the Indians were able to stay in the game thanks to their rebounding. Ashley Clemmons (team-high 13 points) ended the first half with a rebound put-back, a common theme of the half, which sent Neuqua into the break with a 28-19 lead.

“They were definitely beating us on the boards in the first half,” Neuqua senior Megan Doody said. “Coach Williams addressed that at the half. That’s how they were staying in the game, second chances. We were doing great on our press, getting a lot of steals. We were just getting beat on the boards. That was the biggest thing that we tried to do differently in the second half.”

With that shored up, Neuqua pulled away in the second half. The Wildcats pushed the lead to 52-32 with 6:08 left in the game after Amarah Coleman’s lay-up off a steal. Neuqua then put the hammer down with a 13-1 run, pushing the lead to as large as 29 points, late in the fourth to win going away.

“We’re feeling pretty good right now,’ said Doody, who led all scorers with 17 points. “We’re learning to play together more. We’re starting to realize that we need to pass. We’re starting to trust each other more. We’re starting to bond more, and that’s showing on the court. I’m really excited with how things are going.”

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