Red-hot Benet knocks off Lake Park

Benet might be missing its standout point guard, but when the Redwings shoot like they did on Saturday night, it really doesn't matter.

Blistering the nets from the opening whistle, Benet canned 12 3-pointers in a 73-54 win over Lake Park in the third and final game of pool play at the Benet/Naperville North Holiday Tournament in Lisle.

The Redwings (13-1) extended their win streak to 13 games and advance to next Friday's championship against Bolingbrook. The Lancers (9-3) will play for third place.

"We've been working really hard in practice," said junior guard Clara Prasse, who knocked down a pair of 3-pointers on her way to 16 points. "Some days we are really off and some days we have the hot hand. We had the hot hand tonight and we kept finding the open person and they were knocking them down."

Kendall Holmes connected on four 3-pointers, including two in the first quarter, as the home team jumped out to a 25-12 advantage after the opening eight minutes.

Holmes finished with a team-high 18 points. Quin Earley also made four 3-pointers for 12 points and Brooke Schramek hit two as part of her 13 points. As a team, the Redwings were 12 of 24 from beyond the arc.

"We can really shoot it at times," said Benet coach Joe Kilbride, whose team was without senior point guard Tsimba Malonga (knee), a University of Denver recruit. "We have a lot of weapons. I told the kids at the beginning of the year, the analogy is like the Golden State Warriors. There will be days where you have it going and there will be days where she has it going.

"Everyone has to be willing to pass up a good shot to get someone a great shot and I think we've been doing a good job of playing that way."

For Lake Park, that early deficit was too much to overcome. The visitors did rattle off an 8-0 run to close the opening half and trailed 41-28 at the break. But they could get no closer than 12 in the third quarter. The Lancers struggled from the perimeter, making only 3 of 24 3-pointers.

"The first quarter hurt us," Lake Park coach Brian Rupp said. "They got hot right away. We did a good job inside, our post game was there, but it was the 3(-point shot) that was the difference in the game. I told our team at half, it is usually us that is doing that to other teams. I'm not pleased with the loss, but I'm pleased we are getting more balanced with our offense."

Carson Vance kept her team in striking distance, scoring a game-high 21 points. Darrione Rogers added 15 points and 3 blocked shots for Lake Park.

"It is definitely a great opportunity to play a great team like that," Vance said. "We love to have that chance. I thought we played really well tonight. We got one more point in the paint then them, but it was the 3-point shot that got to us. They are a team that can really shoot."