Bartlett Hawks bounce back to net win
Bartlett girls basketball coach Denise Sarna knew from the first play that her message had been received.
The Hawks, who lost 50-45 to Waubonsie Valley on Friday night, put on a defensive showcase in Saturday's 55-43 nonconference victory over West Chicago in Bartlett.
Bartlett (5-3) limited West Chicago to 17.7 shooting percentage (8 of 45) from the floor and never trailed after overcoming a 2-0 deficit early in the game.
"We definitely wanted to make a defensive statement," said Hawks' freshman Ashley Santos, who finished with 8 points and 3 steals. "We were all working hard on defense."
The defense fueled the offense. Bartlett used 23 turnovers by West Chicago (4-4) to build a 44-27 lead by the end of the third quarter. Bartlett center Jacki Gulczynski scored 5 of her game-high 23 points in the third quarter as the Hawks went on a 16-5 run in the period.
West Chicago went 1 of 16 from the floor in the third quarter, after trailing just 28-22 at halftime. The lone basket came when Chrissie Rovtar (13 points, 10 rebounds) connected on a layup with 4 seconds to play.
"We couldn't get anything to fall especially in the third quarter," Wildcats' coach Kim Wallner said. "We couldn't buy a basket. The free throws kept us in the first half."
The Hawks' aggressive play on defense led to 15 first-half fouls and 18 West Chicago free-throw attempts in the second quarter alone. The Wildcats went 14 of 18 from the foul line, with Rovtar converting 7 of 8 in the period. Overall, West Chicago went 25 of 34 from the line, and scored 18 of its first 25 points off free throws.
"At halftime, coach said we have to stop fouling them," said Gulczynski, who added 10 rebounds and 2 blocks. "It was kind of frustrating because we were playing such good defense, but we kept fouling them. They were getting the points from the foul line."
Bartlett cut way back on the fouls in the second half, limiting West Chicago to just 14 attempts. Bartlett was able to extend its lead to 54-32 with 4:07 left to play, by cutting back on the fouls. Bartlett also got 5 points from Rachael Anello in the third quarter.
"We have a deep team," Sarna said. "We can keep up the intensity and keep coming in with fresh legs."
Dani Marciniak added 7 rebounds and Sam Salinas contributed 2 points, 5 rebounds, 1 steal and an assist off the bench for the Hawks.
Bartlett took a 14-3 lead after the first quarter, with 4 of the 5 starters scoring before West Chicago got back on the boards.