Red Devils topple Twin Lakes in third-place game in J & C Hoops , 52-42

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It was far from the perfect girls basketball game, but West Lafayette coach Jane Schott had few complaints after her team’s 52-42 victory over Twin Lakes in the third-place game of the J&C Hoops Classic on Saturday night.

Well, maybe just one.

“They got on the boards on us, which was a little disappointing,” said Schott, whose team was outrebounded 48-38. “That will be a key emphasis for us next week, and I’m grateful for the opportunity to have some games where we see weaknesses we need to work on.”

Despite that rebounding deficit, the Red Devils (4-1) never trailed after Anna Searle’s basket with 4:47 to play in the first half gave WL a 10-8 lead.

Both teams showed the effects of playing for the second time in two nights. The first quarter ended tied at 6-6, with the Red Devils and Indians (2-2) combining for 14 turnovers and 6-of-26 shooting.

“We knew we were going to have to battle through this game,” said Searle, named the winner of the Donald and Pauline Trout Scholarship Award before the game.

West Lafayette led 12-10 with 3:55 left in the first half when suddenly both teams were able to find some offense. Nine straight points by the Red Devils gave them a comfortable lead, and a 3-pointer by Grace Palmieri just before the buzzer made it 28-18.

The momentum shifted toward Twin Lakes after West Lafayette guard Kayla Jones scored the opening basket of the second half off the rebound of a blocked shot by Courtney Bowsman. Bowsman was the only Indian near the basket following a turnover, which upset coach Brad Bowsman.

“I just saw that we gave up,” Brad Bowsman said. “Once we thought they had an easy basket, everyone else was trailing behind. But Courtney went down there and made a block. If we had all hustled down, we possibly could have come up with that ball and they wouldn’t have gotten the easy two points.”

Bowsman got his message across during the 30-second timeout, and Twin Lakes went on a 16-6 run to close within 36-34 on Courtney Bowsman’s two free throws with 1:53 to go in the third quarter. Twin Lakes came within two points on two more occasions but never regained the lead.

“We found a way,” Schott said. “They stayed together, played hard. When shots aren’t going down, you’ve got to play good defense, and our defensive effort was very good.”

Twin Lakes forward Laurhen Pickett led all scorers with 18 points and also grabbed a game-high 12 rebounds.

Shelby Mann had 10 of her team-high 14 points in the second half to help West Lafayette (4-1) withstand the comeback attempt. Searle added 13 points and nine rebounds.

It was far from the perfect girls basketball game, but West Lafayette coach Jane Schott had few complaints after her team’s 52-42 victory over Twin Lakes in the third-place game of the J&C Hoops Classic on Saturday night.

Well, maybe just one.

“They got on the boards on us, which was a little disappointing,” said Schott, whose team was outrebounded 48-38. “That will be a key emphasis for us next week, and I’m grateful for the opportunity to have some games where we see weaknesses we need to work on.”

Despite that rebounding deficit, the Red Devils (4-1) never trailed after Anna Searle’s basket with 4:47 to play in the first half gave WL a 10-8 lead.

Both teams showed the effects of playing for the second time in two nights. The first quarter ended tied at 6-6, with the Red Devils and Indians (2-2) combining for 14 turnovers and 6-of-26 shooting.

“We knew we were going to have to battle through this game,” said Searle, named the winner of the Donald and Pauline Trout Scholarship Award before the game.

West Lafayette led 12-10 with 3:55 left in the first half when suddenly both teams were able to find some offense. Nine straight points by the Red Devils gave them a comfortable lead, and a 3-pointer by Grace Palmieri just before the buzzer made it 28-18.

The momentum shifted toward Twin Lakes after West Lafayette guard Kayla Jones scored the opening basket of the second half off the rebound of a blocked shot by Courtney Bowsman. Bowsman was the only Indian near the basket following a turnover, which upset coach Brad Bowsman.

“I just saw that we gave up,” Brad Bowsman said. “Once we thought they had an easy basket, everyone else was trailing behind. But Courtney went down there and made a block. If we had all hustled down, we possibly could have come up with that ball and they wouldn’t have gotten the easy two points.”

Bowsman got his message across during the 30-second timeout, and Twin Lakes went on a 16-6 run to close within 36-34 on Courtney Bowsman’s two free throws with 1:53 to go in the third quarter. Twin Lakes came within two points on two more occasions but never regained the lead.

“We found a way,” Schott said. “They stayed together, played hard. When shots aren’t going down, you’ve got to play good defense, and our defensive effort was very good.”

Twin Lakes forward Laurhen Pickett led all scorers with 18 points and also grabbed a game-high 12 rebounds.

Shelby Mann had 10 of her team-high 14 points in the second half to help West Lafayette (4-1) withstand the comeback attempt. Searle added 13 points and nine rebounds.