Maisto, Rockets handle Kaneland

After sitting and waiting-and waiting-as their Saturday evening contest was delayed for over an hour because the sophomore boys game went into triple overtime, the last thing the Kaneland girls basketball team wanted to see was Burlington Central three-point artist Jordan Maisto come out with a hot hand.

Not only did Maisto come out gunning and connecting, but her accuracy also opened up the Kaneland defense. This would assist teammate Taylor Colby in putting on a show in the paint, as she scored 28 points and collected 10 rebounds, to lead the Rockets to a 53-36 victory, their fifth straight win.

"It was Jordan in the first half and mostly Taylor in the second," Burlington Central coach Wade Maisto said. "What they've been doing is great. They are seeing each other on the court very well and it's led to Taylor scoring a lot of points."

Kaneland (4-10) was able to keep things close early as center Alyssa Galvan was able to get the ball inside and covert. It wouldn't last though as all but 2 of Galvan's 10 points came in the opening frame.

Burlington Central (9-8) only led 17-13 to begin the second quarter but Maisto (17 points) drilled her fourth 3-pointer of the game at the 5:13 mark as part of a 7-0 run to give the Rockets a 25-13 advantage. At one point the Knights went scoreless for more than 6 minutes and they went into halftime down 29-17.

"We talked about coming out and winning the first four minutes (of the third quarter)," Wade Maisto said. "I think some fatigue began to set in and Kaneland put a nice streak together."

Sara Rose (14 points) basically put the Knights chances in hot-shooting hands to open the second half. She drained a 15-footer and a 3-pointer before swishing four straight free throws to make it a 31-28 game with 2:56 remaining.

"We've come into games so often this year and gotten down early and then have to fight back," Rose said. "We just need more people to step up when they have the chance."

Feeling the momentum shifting into the home team's favor, the Rockets got a huge basket from Kate McNutt, who hit a pull-up jumper - her lone field goal of the game - to initiate a 13-0 run by the Rockets. "This is a good win for us against a physical team," Wade Maisto said. "I'm really pleased with how we've been playing these past two weeks since Christmas. The difference is passing. They're very unselfish and have nice chemistry so it's nice to see good things happen."