Kent, Maine West off to a winning start
Maine West's girls basketball team gave its fans a thrilling comeback on Monday night to kick off the season.
And right in the middle of the rally was a girl who wasn't even in the program a year ago.
Rachel Kent, one of less than a handful of freshmen to start a season opener for coach Derril Kipp in his 35 seasons, scored a game-high 24 points with 5 assists, 3 steals, 3 rebounds and 2 assists to help the Warriors earn a 53-46 victory at Wheeling.
"I was really nervous," said the 5-foot-9 Kent, who graduated from Algonquin Middle School in Des Plaines seven months ago. "It was my first time playing point guard. We started playing defense in the second half and things got better from there."
One of the defensive highlights came from Kent, when after she finished on a fastbreak with a layup, she came right back with a steal off the inbounds pass.
She dribbled a few times and then swung her body around and threw a strike under the basket to senior Monica Liwag, who converted the layup and completed the 3-point play for a 48-42 lead.
"I'm glad she saw me," said Liwag (5 points), who is back after missing the second half of her junior season with a torn ACL. "She's great to play with. She really helps us, and she's only a freshman. She has very good basketball IQ."
The Warriors had to play smart after digging themselves a 29-20 hole late in the first half following a 3-point play by Wheeling senior Michaela Vasey.
"Maine West did a good job staying focused," said Wheeling coach Matt Weber, whose team hit five 3-pointers in the first half (two apiece by sophomore Nansy Velev and junior Kourtney Schuetz and one by junior Shannon Kennedy). "And we were 15-of-31 at the free throw line. That is a bad stat, especially in a close game."
It got real close when Kent's driving bank shot gave West its first lead at 41-40 with 5:02 left in the third quarter. The Wildcats answered with a 16-footer by Schuetz before Liwag's layup gave West the lead for good at 43-42.
"We just knew we had to be patient and get back into the game," Liwag said.
"We tried to play a match-up zone in the first half and we didn't execute," Kipp said. "We needed to put more pressure on them in the second half, and we did.
"Give Wheeling a lot of credit because they out-hustled until the fourth quarter. They played with a lot of heart."
Kent played the point because sophomore Allison Pearson, who started at that position last year, is currently sidelined with a foot injury.
"It hurt having Rachel play the point," Kipp said. "It's harder for her to score because she was having to handle the ball all the time."
Sophomore Destiny Onyeise scored 10 points with 6 rebounds and 4 blocked shots for West, which converted 9 free throws in the fourth quarter, including 3 from senior Kayla Pociejewski.
Wheeling was led by junior Melissa Claver 14 points (8 in the third quarter). Schuetz finished with 10 points followed by Kennedy (8), Vasey (7) and Velev (6).
"We need to be balanced (scoring-wise)," Weber said. "The first three quarters we played to our strengths, playing as a team with good multiple-pass possessions. We're a little inexperienced and started to play like that. We were a little out of character. We've got to continue to get better and play with the mentality that we work as a team."
Kent's big debut included 12 points in each half.
"She's good," Weber said. "She's good at creating her shots and patient enough to take advantage of the match-up opportunities. She doesn't force a lot and works for the high-percentage shot."