Maine West falls to Indiana power
Tourney director Jim O'Boye gave fans a real feast at the 30th annual Coach Kipp's Hoopsfest on Saturday.
For his 3 p.m. game of the action-packed girls basketball shootout at Willowbrook High School, O'Boye paired defending state champions from Indiana and Illinois.
Maine West and Northwestern High School from Kokomo, IN. brought along their stars, too.
Unfortunately for Maine West, Oregon recruit Angela Dugalic was not on the floor (5 fouls) in the decisive last minute and half and the Tigers were able to inch away to a 61-58 triumph in Villa Park.
With Dugalic (22 points, 10 rebounds) picking up her fifth foul with 1:47 left and all-area standout guard Dylan VanFleet (7 points, 6 assists) playing with 4 fouls, the Warriors still managed to tie the game at 1:13 when Jane Rothweiler fired home a 3-pointer to make it 58-58.
However, Purdue recruit and Northwestern's all-time leading scorer Madison Layden, who has scored more than 2,100 career points, fired a perfect pass (backdoor play) to classmate Klair Merrell who made the layup for a 60-58 lead with 59 seconds left.
After a Maine West timeout, the Warriors (18-2) let the clock run down to less than 10 seconds when the Tigers batted away a pass and Layden recovered.
The 6-foot-1 senior then made one of two free throws with 0.8 seconds left for the final margin.
Layden finished with 22 points while Michigan State recruit Kendall Bostic, also a 6-1 senior, added 19 to lead Northwestern (20-0) to its 27th straight win.
"It was not the outcome we wanted with Angela and Dylan fouling out but I still take the blame for not putting our girls in a position in practice where we function without both of them on the court," said Maine West coach Kim de Marigny, whose team lost for only the second time in 56 games. "If we don't have Angela or Dylan out there, I need to work on making the five who are out there feel confident so they're not just running around out there saying 'OK, who is our leader now?' "
The Warriors took the lead in the interstate showdown by racing to a 21-10 lead early in the second quarter when Dugalic assisted on VanFleet's 3-pointer.
The Tigers clawed back and gained a 35-29 lead at intermission as they scored 9 of the last 11 points in the second quarter.
However, the Warriors came out on fire in the third quarter, putting together a 10-0 run that lasted until 2:45 when Layden made 2 free throws to cut the West cushion to 45-37.
Those 2 free throws started Northwestern on a 17- 3 run that lasted into the fourth quarter.
"At one point we're doing so well (to start the second half)," Dugalic said. "Then all of a sudden when they pressured us, they got like 6 points in less than 30 seconds. After having the lead like we did, and then having to start all over again, that hurts mentally. But this is another learning experience."
West's supporting cast continues to gain more experience playing key roles. Rothweiler finished with 11 points and freshman Jackie Riedl (6 rebounds) and Brianna Hernandez each added eight. Lena Albo chipped in 6 rebounds, 4 assists with her 4 points.
"Our communication needs to get better," VanFleet added. "We need to get better as a team. It's just the little things.
"It's definitely fun playing at this event."
Layden and Rothweiler each had three 3-pointers.
"Our communication needs to get better," VanFleet added. "We need to get better as a team. It's just the little things.
"It's definitely fun playing at this event. They (Northwestern) were tough at the 3-point-line so we had to watch that a lot and they had a presence inside, too," VanFleet said. "After Angela fouled out, that made it harder on me when I had four fouls."
"I think Dylan is beginning to understand just how valuable she is," de Marigny said "Even though she doesn't have the biggest stature, her heart is big. Her passion and love for the game is something she feeds off.
"It' important she stays on the floor. And Angela, too. But they're still kids. They do things with their adrenaline."
Like Maine West (ranked No. 2 in Class 4A), Northwestern has been doing things quite well the past few seasons, too.
The Tigers have won the Indiana Class 3A state title the past two years and are currently ranked No. 1 in Indiana.
Head coach Kathie Layden is the mother of Madison and freshman McKenna Layden (7 points), who is also 6-foot-1.
Kathie Layden is assisted by her husband Jeff Layden and her father Dave Wise.
Kathie and Jeff played basketball at the University of Evansville.
"It was a great game," said Kathie Layden, who also won three straight Class 1A Indiana state titles (2003-05) when she was the head coach at Tri-Central High School in Sharpsville. "We were happy to be here and see this caliber of competition. It proved to be a great game for everyone."