Bad fourth quarter sinks Kaneland
The late third-quarter Kaneland lead vanished in a hurry.
The host Knights welcomed Hampshire for the girls basketball teams' season opener on Tuesday evening, and 15 seconds proved to be a lifetime for the Whips to make their move.
The Knights' hard-gained 7-point lead was reduced to a mere field goal entering the fourth quarter as Jaclyn Clai capped the 5-point flourish as part of her game-high 21-point effort.
The unanswered run in the waning seconds of the quarter carried over into the decisive fourth; the Whips proceeded to end the game in Maple Park with a 21-4 blitz to seal their 56-42 victory.
"(The end of the third quarter) kind of put some air back in our balloon," said Hampshire coach Sue Ellett.
"It was a huge swing," added Kaneland coach Ernie Colombe. "That was probably the turning point."
Kaneland (0-1) nursed its tenuous lead into the early stretches of the fourth, but the Whips (1-0) took the lead for good when Mallory Koster converted a 3-point play with five minutes, 26 seconds to play.
The Knights fought back and reduced their deficit to 46-42 on two Katie Hatch free throws.
Clai was cited for an over-and-back violation moments later, but the Knights' attempts to make further inroads were quickly extinguished by the Whips' senior leader.
Clai had the last of her 8 steals on back-to-back Knights possessions to set up Cassie Domoulin for one deuce and added another of her own seconds later to double the lead to 50-42.
The Knights failed to score again over the final two-plus minutes, and Clai, coming off only two days practice in the aftermath of the Whips' Class 2A runner-up finish at state volleyball over the weekend, was the main reason.
"It was first-game jitters for some of us," said Clai, responding to the Whips' slow start. "I just was looking for some openings. I didn't practice at all during volleyball (season). This (basketball) is my main sport."
The Whips' three-year starting point guard received able support from Koster and Christina Heine.
Koster scored all 14 of her points after the intermission, and Heine was a force at both ends with 11 points, 11 rebounds, 3 steals and 2 blocks.
"(Heine) is a super soph," said Ellett. "She is very seasoned (for her age)."
Hatch led Kaneland with 12 points, and Mallory Huml, who had consecutive field goals during the Knights' 18-7 third-quarter run, finished with 9.
"Defense was definitely a bright spot," said Colombe. "Some encouraging things tonight, but we need to work on some things."