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Magic make Comets defense disappear
NEVADA, Mo. -- The Cottey Comets had trouble slowing down the St. Louis Community College-Meramec Magic Saturday, as they fell 79-67.
Meramec had four players score in double figures, simply outscoring the Comets in a game that wasn't a thing of defensive beauty.
The game was close the entire first half as the Magic led 34-32 as Cottey battled foul trouble.
Lacy Leonard and Ashleigh Houdyshell each had three fouls before the break, but the Comets were able to keep it close thanks to timely shots by Kerri Shanks and Kayla Orear.
In the second half Meramec used an 11-0 run to gain a little breathing room, after a Leonard baseline jumper had tied the game at 38.
The game remained with the Magic up by double digits until Cottey made one last run to try and keep it close.
Shanks hit a trey from the left wing with 5:40 remaining in the game, closing the gap to 64-58.
Two Leonard free throws on Cottey's next possession brought the Comets within four with 4:58 left, and that's when the Magic made their final push.
After a pair from the charity stripe from Meramec's Sarah Duckworth, the Magic called timeout leading 66-60. Leonard had a layup roll out on Cottey's next possession and Meramec went on a 6-0 run to put the game to bed.
"I thought the wind went out of our sails when that shot rolled out," Cottey coach Dave Ketterman said. "It was just the play we wanted."
Cottey had been trying to stay with Meramec, despite having an obvious disadvantage in depth.
"They're awfully tough off the dribble, and they go about six guards deep. All quality guards," Ketterman said.
The two big runs for Meramec came with Cottey turning the ball over often thanks to a couple variations of trapping zones. Meramec used two different half-court traps and some full-court inbounds pressure to force Cottey into turnovers.
Ketterman said the press eventually wore his team out.
"A team like that, they're looking for cumulative effect for 40 minutes," he said. "It was just a matter of time."
Leonard actually had one of her best games of the season, pouring in 33 points to go along with 10 rebounds.
Orear scored 13 as the only other Comet in double figures, while Shanks finished with nine.
Sam Turner led Meramec with 18 points, and Jessica Streiler scored 12 on four 3-pointers. Kelly Viehland and Duckworth each had 10 for the Magic.
The Comets (8-9 overall, 4-5 in NJCAA Region 16) will wrap up region play today when they host Penn Valley out of Kansas City. If Cottey can beat Penn Valley, they will clinch a first-round home game in the region tournament Feb. 25. The Comets have never defeated Penn Valley in the school's athletic history. The game is scheduled to tip off at 7 p.m.
Notes: Leonard's performance Saturday vaulted her to the top spot in the scoring race in NJCAA Division II. Her 22.889 points-per-game lead the nation.