Neuqua Valley repeats as Oswego champion
Going strictly by the number of bodies a team can put on the court, it's awful hard to beat Neuqua Valley.
Oswego finally succumbed Saturday.
The No. 7 Wildcats used their seemingly endless substitutions and a 19-1 second-half run to turn away a tougher-than-expected Oswego 62-35 and win the Oswego Holiday Classic for the second straight year.
"We use our entire bench to keep the other teams running," said Neuqua senior Amber Smith. "We're one of the only teams who really uses their whole bench so we can run teams and wear 'em out.
Neuqua (11-1) played 13 girls, almost all of them seeing significant court time in the Wildcats' frequent substituting, high-pressure style.
Oswego (7-7), on the other hand, was starting three freshmen and one sophomore with three of the Panthers' regulars injured. That group includes arguably their best player, senior Paige Harmon, who broke her foot over the summer and hasn't played yet this year.
The Panthers hung tough for three quarters, though.
"It was kind of a war of attritution and it wore us down," Oswego coach Chad Pohlmann said. "At the end of the game, they were just too much for us. That's what (Neuqua) is about this year."
Tied 10-10 after a quarter, Neuqua pushed ahead to go up 29-17 at halftime. Oswego clawed back, Taylor Paisley's 3-pointer capping an 8-0 run to draw the Panthers within 36-32 with 1:30 left in the third quarter.
Neuqua sophomore Amarah Coleman had the answer at the other end, burying a corner 3.
"At the beginning of the game, I wasn't making those shots, but I just knew that one was going in," said Coleman, who scored a team-high 11 points. "It just brought up the whole team and gave us momentum."
Kristen Moore muscled in a putback to finish the quarter up 41-32, hit two free throws to start the fourth and Coleman made a driving layup for a 45-33 lead. A 3-pointer by tournament MVP Megan Doody continued a decisive 12-0 run.
"I really take pride in our defense because we hustle really hard and we get after it," Smith said. "The fourth quarter we held them to 3 points. I'm pretty proud of that."
Neuqua forced 12 Oswego fourth-quarter turnovers with its constant pressure. The Wildcats didn't so much dial it up a a notch as they did play smarter.
"We made some adjustments," Neuqua coach Mike Williams said. "Oswego was overloading one side so we just shifted over and said, 'Hey we don't need to pressure right away, just back off a little and let them come to us.' Once we made that adjustment, we were causing some havoc. It was a great team effort. With us you never know who it's going to come from."
Moore scored 8 points and Jenny Voytell 7 for Neuqua off the bench, the Wildcats subs outscoring Oswego's 35-7. Amber Smith added 6 points and 8 rebounds.
Freshman Jordan Campbell led Oswego with 12 points.