By ISAAC DEER
TopSports.news
While the Washburn Rural girls basketball team squeaked by with a five-point victory over Manhattan 12 days ago, the story was completely different on Wednesday night in the Class 6A sub-state semifinal.
Senior Brooklyn DeLeye led the way with 16 points as Washburn Rural advanced to a sub-state final with a 43-30 win over Manhattan. [File photo/TSN]
The 43-30 victory over Manhattan (7-14) was crucial for Washburn Rural (15-5), which extended its win streak against Manhattan to 14 games and clinched a spot in Saturday's sub-state championship game against Topeka High.
"I thought we got off to a pretty good start," Washburn Rural coach Kevin Bordewick said. "I thought our intensity was pretty good, especially on the defensive end. We got up 10-0, and then we had a little lapse on offense and a little lapse on defense, and they cut the deficit in half.
"We need to take care of the ball better. At the end of the second quarter, and at the end of the fourth quarter, we didn't do that very well at all. So it's a problem that we realize we need to work on. And we are getting better at it, but we have got a lot of strides to take."
Washburn Rural made essential adjustments against Manhattan from its last meeting 12 days ago and rolled past the Indians in a 13-point victory that wasn't as close as the score looked.
One of Washburn Rural's most significant adjustments was containing Manhattan standout senior guard Avery Larson. Larson dropped 25 points in the last meeting, but Washburn Rural allowed 12 points from her this time.
"Avery Larson is a phenomenal shooter," Bordewick said. "She hit seven 3s against us a week ago or so, and she lit it up against Hayden as well. We wanted to try and limit her. I thought Chloe (Carlgren) did a decent job (guarding Larson). We were kind of keying in on a couple of kids. We wanted to limit their drives."
Lady Blues senior star Brooklyn DeLeye paced Washburn Rural with 16 points. DeLeye was dominant in the paint, especially in an eight-point second quarter.
"She's just phenomenal," Bordewick said. "Even having said that, I got on her a couple of times about making better passes, making better decisions and being more aggressive. She needs to demand the ball a bit more. We need to see it better when she has that arm extended; we need to give her the ball more, too."
The Lady Blues were the better team on defense as well as offense. Manhattan shot 24 percent (12 of 49) from the floor, while Washburn Rural shot 38 percent (15 of 39).
"I thought (Rural) came out very aggressive and physical while we turned the ball over too many times," Manhattan coach Scott Mall said. "(Rural) did a good job shutting down what we were trying to do. They got us in a hole, and it's hard enough to battle against a good team like theirs. We needed to hit shots to get back in the game, and we weren't able to do that."
Manhattan couldn't find the bottom of the net to start the first 4:31 to begin the contest. Washburn Rural jumped in front with a 10-0 run, forcing the Indians to take a timeout.
After the timeout, Larson would score Manhattan's only five total points of the quarter. Manhattan shot two of 11 from the field in the opening quarter while turning the ball over six times, which was huge for Washburn Rural.
"Avery (Larson) had a good game against (Rural) last time, so they put Chloe (Carlgren) against her this time, who's a great defensive player," Mall said. "(Carlgren) did a great job fighting through screens, and she made it hard for Avery to hit shots."
That stellar Lady Blues opening quarter opened up fastbreak opportunities and excellent shot selection, with Manhattan already battling a deficit that kept on growing.
Those second-quarter opportunities allowed DeLeye to have a solid eight-point quarter, and it slowed the game down for Washburn Rural.
Washburn Rural's defense allowed Manhattan to a combined five of 22 shooting going into the halftime break. The Lady Blues' offense shot eight of 24 from the field but held a sizeable 24-12 lead.
That Washburn Rural advantage would grow to as much as 20 points in the third quarter. Strong offensive quarters from sophomore Kate Hinck and senior MaRyah Lutz helped Washburn Rural's consistency and motion.
Lutz would give Washburn Rural an added jolt of energy with a buzzer-beating mid-range jumper to end the third quarter with the Lady Blues leading 37-19.
With the Lady Blues holding an 18-point lead, Bordewick allowed some of the non-starters to get some minutes on the court with the win at hand.
Washburn Rural will take on Centennial League and city foe Topeka High on Saturday at High. The winner will advance to the Class 6A state tournament.
"This feels like a league tournament," Bordewick said. "In sub-state, you'd like to play different people and maybe get more league teams to the state tournament. Manhattan is good. I know (Manhattan) doesn't have a winning record, but they are not a bad team. And I think T-High and us have been ranked in the top ten for most of, if not, all this season. It's a shame one of us isn't going to be there."
WASHBURN RURAL GIRLS 43, MANHATTAN 30.
Manhattan 5 7 7 11 – 30
Washburn Rural 12 17 13 6 – 43
Manhattan (7-14) – A. Larson 12 5-8 1-1 12, Salmans 2-5 0-0 4, Yates 1-7 0-0 3, D. Larson 1-2 0-0 3, Ball 1-7 0-0 3, Doering 1-8 0-0 2, Chauncey 1-9 0-0 2, Ruliffson 0-1 1-2 1, Ingram 0-2 0-0 0. Totals – 12-49 2-3 30.
Washburn Rural (15-5) – DeLeye 7-12 2-4 16, Lutz 2-6 4-4 8, Hinck 3-8 1-2 8, Carlgren 1-5 3-4 5, Ochs 1-3 2-2 4, Bunck 1-5 0-0 2. Totals – 15-39 12-16 43.
3-point goals – Washburn Rural 1 (Hinck), Manhattan 4 (D. Larson, Yates, Ball, A. Larson). Total fouls – Washburn Rural 12, Manhattan 15. Fouled out – none. Technical fouls – none.
