Geneva gets offense going, overcomes WW South
Wheaton Warrenville South coach Rob Kroehnke promptly described Thursday's game as "A tale of two halves" after his Tigers finished battling Geneva.
Unfortunately for the Tigers, their storybook first half didn't come with a happy ending as the Vikings (10-0) rebounded from a terrible offensive half to defeat WW South 49-34 at the Naperville North/Benet Academy Girls Holiday Tournament in Lisle.
The Tigers (6-4) led 16-12 at the half after limiting Geneva to just 12 points on 4-of-23 shooting. But the second half was totally different, including a 21-point third quarter by a Vikings team that shot a blistering 14 of 22 over the final two quarters, many of which came on fastbreak buckets or post scores.
"We worked tremendously hard on defense in the first half," Kroehnke said. "It was a great team effort and we were controlling the tempo. But it was the exact opposite in the second half."
Vikings guard Kat Yelle played a big role in helping her team turn things around against the Tigers. After Geneva tallied just 7 points in the first quarter and 5 in the second, Yelle topped that all by herself with 8 of her 11 points in the third quarter, which ended with the Vikings on top 33-24.
"We weren't running our plays all the way through," Yelle said in trying to explain her team's low first-half output. "We were more patient in the second half and looked for smart shots instead of just jacking it up."
The Vikings went inside more often and forward Lauren Wicinski had 7 of her 11 points in the big third quarter. Kat Yelle, Myra Yelle and Ashley Santos each added 3-pointers as the team took control in the third quarter.
"Lauren was really posting up well for us, but when she got doubled she kicked it back out," Kat Yelle said.
Geneva coach Gina Nolan felt her team's defense provided a big boost in the second half.
"We finally hit some shots. But I felt like our full-court man gave us some more energy," she said.
Annie Shain was 6 of 6 from the foul line and led the Tigers with 8 points, while Caitlin Schwark had 4 points, 8 rebounds and 2 steals for WW South.
"Our kids showed we can play with people," Kroehnke said. "Now they've got to show it for the whole game."
For Geneva, Santos and Sammy Scofield each scored 8 points after the two had combined for just 3 points in the first half.
"I said to them we really have to put that half behind us," Noland said. "In the second half our ball movement got better and we got the ball inside more and that definitely helps."