Girls basketball: Larkin picks up the pace, knocks off South Elgin
Spectators in Larkin’s gym must have felt like they were watching an entirely different game after the halftime break.
Following a desultory first half that saw the Storm leading 12-7, the teams came out with a much different pace and energy. After combining for 19 points in the first half, they totaled 32 in the third quarter alone.
The Royals also found their shooting touch. They accounted for 20 of those third-quarter points, taking the lead for good near the end of the period and holding on for a 42-37 Upstate Eight victory.
Mia Carter scored 15 of her game-high 17 points in the second half and Yesenia Escobar added 11 for Larkin (9-2, 5-0).
Trailing 22-16, Larkin closed the third quarter on an 8-0 run, taking the lead for good on a pair of Escobar free throws and extending it on a putback by Makayla Pruess.
Larkin continued the run with Carter scoring the first 2 baskets of the fourth quarter to make it 31-24.
The visitors from South Elgin refused to back down. Janessa Pace’s 3-pointer made it a 1 possession game at 40-37. But with time running out, the Storm couldn’t get a turnover or a foul, and Mariah Chandler’s layup proved to be the clincher.
“I think the first half, we just played with a lot of nerves,” said Larkin coach Deryn Carter. “We just sped up a little bit, doing a little too much here or there. I’m proud of the way they responded, though. That was a heck of a second half.”
Mia Carter, who missed Tuesday’s game with an illness, bounced back in a big way, scoring 9 points in the fourth quarter.
South Elgin took advantage of a huge rebounding edge to stay in the game. The Storm outrebounded the Royals 35-16 through 3 periods and, although Larkin evened things up somewhat in the fourth, still finished with a 39-24 advantage.
Liv Miller grabbed 17 rebounds to go with 10 points. Pace finished with 11 points and 5 boards, and Anevay Hernandez added 6 rebounds for South Elgin.
Chandler finished with 6 points off the bench for Larkin.
South Elgin led 4-2 after one quarter. The Storm took their biggest lead at 12-4 on a putback by Hernandez late in the first half.
After the break, Larkin tied the game at 15 on a Chandler layup after a steal by Escobar. South Elgin quickly regained the lead and stretched it to 22-16 after a bucket by Taleah Banner — who finished with 7 points — and a pair of free throws by Miller. The Storm still led 24-19 after another bucket by Banner, but South Elgin would not score again in the quarter as Larkin tallied the last 8 points.