Reiff, ‘Cats Rip The Norse
WINONA LAKE – It was an unfamiliar setting, and an unconventional method in approach. But deciding to just let the kids play worked for Whitko girls basketball head coach Brandon Bradley and his Wildcats. The decision resulted in a 70-41 victory Saturday night.
Whitko faced Three Rivers Conference foe Northfield on legendary Lancer coach Jim Kessler’s Court at Grace College. The spacious floor and uncommon backgrounds made for a slow start for both sides, only combining for 14 total points in the first quarter. But Whitko got things going quickly in the second quarter, scoring 23 points, and blew the game open with a huge run in the third.
A spread offense and loose style where the girls called the shots resulted in Whitko ending the third quarter on an 18-2 run, taking what was two-point Northfield lead after eight minutes and flipping to a 52-25 Whitko scoreline after 24 minutes. Whitko outscored Northfield 46-17 in the second and third quarters.
“We completely went away from our normal zone offense, we just wanted to see who could make a play, who could make a read,” Bradley said. “We wanted them to play like they were playing open gym against a two-three. Like we play in June. We try not to keep it structured in June, and that’s what we did today.
“I can’t tell you who cut where or when or why. I just told them, the only rule is simply pass and move. If you stand in one spot without the ball for more than two seconds, you’re standing too long. If you have the ball for more than two seconds, you haven’t reversed it quick enough.”
Aly Reiff thrived in the offense, scoring at will in the third quarter. Reiff had 12 points in the third and finished with a whopping 23 points, nine rebounds and seven assists before exiting midway through the fourth quarter.
Brianna Cumberland also found plenty of space in Northfield’s scramble defense to pop four three’s and finish with 14 total points. Jen Reiff added 10 points and Hanna Yohe chipped in seven points.
After a stretch sandwiching the holiday where Whitko faced four ranked teams in six games (1-5 in those games), the ‘Cats have pieced together a modest three-game winning streak and finish up against three teams with sub-500 records to close out the season. Whitko sits at 14-6 overall and 5-2 in the TRC.
“I think this was a product of getting past that tough stretch of games and feeling comfortable in our skin again,” Bradley said. “That stretch of six games was incredibly tough. And once we got through it, it hurt our confidence a little bit. Tuesday night (against Wawasee) we noticed a difference in our attitude, we felt more like ourselves.”
Northfield, which fell below .500 to 10-11 overall and 5-3 in the TRC, was led by the 18 points from Payton Thomson and 16 from Kelcie Thomson. The two sisters combined to hit seven threes in the game.
Whitko hosts Lakeland (2-18) Tuesday evening. The Wildcats close the season with back-to-back games in the TRC at Wabash Friday night and at home next Saturday against Maconaquah.