The Hillsboro girls rode an explosive third quarter to a convincing 44-25 win at Ellinwood on Friday.
The win evened the Trojans’ record to 4-4 for the season and kept them undefeated in league play at 2-0. The Eagles fell to 1-5 overall and 0-3 in the league.
Dakota Kaufman picks her way through a sea of arms and legs to score two of her 18 points in a 44-25 win at Ellinwood.
Both teams struggled to score early in the game, but a basket by Dakota Kaufman and a free throw by Amanda Faber vaulted the Trojans into the lead for good at 8-6 when the first quarter ended.
A 6-0 surge in the first 1:30 of the second quarter extended the lead to eight points, and Hillsboro maintained that margin at 17-10 by the end of the first quarter.
The Trojans came out strong in the third period. Faber lit the fuse with a bucket 19 seconds into the action, then followed that with a 3-pointer at the 7:05 mark.
After Ellinwood scored a basket to make the score 22-12, the Trojans reeled off eight straight points, including the last seven by Kassidi Luthi, coming off the bench. After one more Ellinwood basket, Faber capped the period with two scores in the final 38 seconds of the half to give Hillsboro a 34-14 cushion.
The Trojans built the lead to 42-16 midway through the final period before Ellinwood found some rhythm late in the game and cut the margin to 19.
Coach Nathan Hiebert was pleased with the way his team elevated its game in the second half.
“I thought we just executed better,” he said. “We had the first half to see everything in person, seeing the back cuts and those things. We did a nice job defensively to be where we needed to be.
“Offensively, we had some opportunities in the first half and took a quick shot. We made an extra pass in the second half and I think that had a huge payoff for a lot of girls.”
Kaufman and Faber led the Trojan attack with 18 and 15 points, respectively.
“Dakota had a nice game, but it was because of lot of extra passes coming in there, and so did Amanda,” Hiebert said.
On the defensive end, the Trojans shut down the Eagles’ strongest player in guard Sarah Plowman, who managed only 4 points on 1-for-11 shooting from the floor.
“Amanda said, ‘I want to guard her,’” Hiebert said. “I love that intensity and enthusiasm, and she did a nice job. She keeps herself far enough away to keep the penetration out, but close enough that it’s not an easy shot. She plays smart.”
The Trojan defense limited the Eagles to 31 percent (11-26) shooting while taking almost twice as many shots and making 38 percent (19-50).
The other key was rebounding, where Hillsboro dominated the Eagles, 39-16. Kaufman led the team with 10 boards to post a double-double for the night. Faber pulled down seven.
Coming—Hillsboro was scheduled to begin action in the Trojan Classic on Tuesday evening. Throughout the tournament, results and play times will be posted at www.hillsborofreepress.com and on the Free Line at 947-3363.
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