SOUTH WHITLEY – On an evening where the school had been empty all day, Whitko made a lively start hold up in a 48-35 girls basketball win over Wawasee Tuesday night at Whitko.

Given school had been cancelled Tuesday at Whitko, Lady Wildcat head coach Brandon Bradley worried a lack of buzz around campus, as well as a full day to think about things, may hinder his club.

“Everything was weird, our attendance today probably wasn’t what it would have been had we had school,” Bradley said. “We didn’t have a great student turnout. It’s not their fault, they just didn’t know.”

It was anything but sluggish from the start for Bradley’s team.

Whitko came out firing, getting a pair of threes out of the gate from Aly Reiff and Brianna Cumberland to help the hosts to a 15-8 advantage after one. A key sequence in the second quarter may have put the dagger in Wawasee’s hopes, however.

A pair of looks into the post on transition found Whitko’s Jordan Hall waiting on a mismatch in the post. Two straight conversions put Whitko up double digits. A three by Elizabeth Jackson had Wawasee hanging around at 24-15, but shortly thereafter, Jessica Reiff drove the lane and converted an and-one, putting the Lady Wildcats up 12 and firmly in control.

“This is as selfless as a team I have ever had,” Bradley said. “Our kids know where each other are on the floor. That has really helped create opportunities for us, both inside and outside.”

Wawasee would make things a little interesting midway through the fourth quarter, inching the lead down to 11 after Jackson recorded her fifth steal and converted on the other end. Whitko, however, would hit its free throws late and punch in its 11th win of the season to just five losses.

Wawasee, which fall to 2-12 on the campaign, had Kylee Rostochak lead the team with 13 points and added five rebounds, three assists and three steals. Jackson finished with nine points to go with four rebounds and the quintet of steals. Aubrey Schmeltz pulled down seven boards.

The Lady Warriors struggled mightily from three-point land, hitting just 4-25 overall. But Wawasee head coach Kem Zolman wasn’t terribly discouraged.

“The kids did better tonight,” Zolman stated. “It’s hard to get upset with the kids when they work hard. It looks ugly because shots aren’t falling the way we are used to seeing. That’s just where we are at right now. The effort is there.”

Hall finished with a double-double of 11 points and 10 boards, five of the rebounds on the offensive glass. Jennifer Reiff matched Hall with 11 points, and the Reiff magic kept on with Aly Reiff and Kelly Reiff both finishing with eight points apiece.

In the JV game, Whitko held Wawasee to just one point for much of the first half in an eventual 31-13 rout. Hannah Yohe led the charge for Whitko with 12 points. Kayla White ended up with five points and two steals for Wawasee.

Whitko will look forward to its next contest, albeit an odd 2:30 p.m. start Saturday against Three Rivers Conference rival Northfield. Whitko, sitting at 4-1 in the TRC, has its conference destiny in its hands. Northfield is 3-1 but still has to deal with Whitko Saturday and Rochester, which is also 3-1 in the standings. A win Saturday puts Whitko in prime position to at least play for a share of the TRC crown with a game at currently undefeated Wabash (3-0) Feb. 1, but a lot has to be settled before then. Starting with Saturday.

“I feel like we are in an NFL playoff scenario,” joked Bradley of the numerous scenarios that could play out in the TRC race. “Bottom line is you hold your own destiny. It is exciting, but we have got to learn how to play in those situations.”

Wawasee gets back on the court Saturday night in a home contest against scrappy Plymouth, a 6:15 p.m. JV tip with varsity to follow.