HOWARD – Breathe in. Breath out.
Centerburg girls basketball coach Bo Glenn was not above admitting a sigh of relief when his Trojans notched a 54-33 victory at East Knox in Knox Morrow Athletic Conference play on Saturday, Jan. 16. The Trojans overcame an 11-point deficit in the first quarter with a 33-7 run that stretched all the way into the fourth quarter on their way to ending a 10-game skid.
“Yes,” Glenn responded when asked if there was a sigh of relief. The response was so immediate that it cut off the end of the question.
“I told every single one of them if the bus is quiet, then we’ll run when we get back,” he added. “I want a party on the bus.”
Chloe Goulter picked up two quick fouls in the opening quarter, prompting a visual and audible response from Glenn.
When she came back into the game midway through the second quarter, she reeled off five points, a pair of steals and an assist to help the Trojans (4-12, 3-8) pull within 20-19 at the end of the half.
“She’s so daggone fast, she’s capable of (getting steals),” Glenn said. “That’s why I was so mad when she picked up her second foul. When she’s reaching and she’s fouling it does us no good. Us. Team. When she’s in the game, she’s crucial for our success.”
“I think we’ve been struggling to have a leader on this team,” Goulter said. “I’m not saying I’m the leader or anything — by any means. But I think we needed somebody to step up in a leadership role in this game. So I felt like I needed to step up and provide that.”
Clara Johnson led Centerburg with 15 points, 13 rebounds and three steals; Goulter finished with 12 points, five boards, three assists and the two steals; and Amelia Smith had 12 points, five rebounds and a pair of assists.
“We have a really talented team this year; and like Coach Bo said in the locker room, it finally came together in this game,” Goulter said.
East Knox started strong with 3s by Alexandria Magers and Laura Keith to build a 16-7 cushion late in the opening period. But a switch in defenses by the Trojans stunted the Bulldog offense from there.
“We played really well the first quarter and then they wouldn’t let me quit and say that was the game,” East Knox coach Chip Pozderac quipped.
Magers finished with 12 points, four rebounds, three helpers and a pair of steals; and Keith, Shanda Melick and Madi Annett pitched in seven points apiece to lead the Bulldogs. Keith added four rebounds, three blocks and two steals; Melick had seven rebounds and six steals and Annett pulled down seven rebounds against Centerburg.
“They wanted it more,” Pozderac said frankly. “We didn’t hustle back on defense and we didn’t box out.”
East Knox ended its own losing streak of six games by breaking out offensively in a 77-60 win at Lucas in non-league play on Monday, Jan. 18.
Magers exploded for 26 points, knocking down four 3-pointers along the way, to lead the Bulldogs (5-9, 4-5) in the win. Melick scored 19 points and Keith added 18 points — hitting four 3s as well — for East Knox, which led 22-13 after one quarter and cruised from there.
Shelby Grover led the Cubs (4-6) with 32 points.
