A dramitic come from behind victory

It wasn't pretty, but it was a win.

I sometimes have to step back and remember who my players are. I really only had one player who played with consistent poise last night, and she was the only starter I returned from last year. You can't fake experience.

My point guard, who is a tremendous talent, had 11 turnovers. My small forward, who is my most versatile offensive player, looked terrible in the first quarter. My center, got into foul trouble and at one point looked like she was going to get into a fight. My off guard played pretty well and my power forward was great. The bench really struggled.

We got down by as much as 14 in the first half. Foul trouble and turnovers killed us. Thankfully, my lone senior (the PF) was steady. She calmed the ship and played well.

We made two adjustments at the half. First, we moved to a box and one on their best player. Second, we started to attack the back of the zone instead of the high post. So, after starting the 3rd quarter down by 7, we went on a 15-1 run to be up by 7. Then, foul trouble, poor conditioning, and poor substitution patterns allowed them to cut the lead to 1.

In the fourth quarter, Whites Creek had 2 girls who hadn't hit a shot all night knock down three pointers. We widdled our way back and took the lead with less than 2 minutes left. Then, up by one with less than a minute left, our center hit 2 clutch free throws. Unfortunately, they hit a fadeaway 25 foot three (on the bank), to tie the score.

Now the drama. We called timeout to discuss what we would do. I set up a play and (as is often the case) the play screwed up. But, my sophomore PG stayed poised and drove the basket only to kick it out to our SF who hit a three with 15 seconds left. We played good defense and finished the game.

Not pretty, but a win. Hopefully, we won't get killed on Thursday by Mt. Juliet.