Rude awakening

by Bryan Zollman

For the second straight game the Sauk Centre girls basketball team struggled mightily on offense, and for the second straight game it cost them a victory.

The Streeters lost in the West Central Conference North-South title game Tonight in Sauk Centre 45-29 to south champion Atwater-Cosmos-Grove City.

Sauk once again got off to a slow start as ACGC went on a 10-0 run after Sauk's Kali Peschel scored the opening bucket. The Streeters never got back in it. The closest they came was within eight points after Kourtney Nelson and Shelby Deters both made buckets.

While the offense struggled, so did the defense at times. ACGC had plenty of good looks at the basket. There were several times where it appeared Sauk defenders got caught out of position. Pure and simple, the defensive intensity that has been as much a hallmark of this team as the explosive offense, just wasn't evident tonight.

Down the stretch the Streeters were forced to rely on the three-pointer. They haven't had to play from behind all year and tonight proved how important it is for them to get out of the gates with a solid start. When they have fallen behind in the past two games they have been forced to shoot from outside. Both times opposing defenses have inflated their perimeter defense, forcing the Streeters to launch bombs from way beyond the arc. And for two straight games the Streeters have been ice cold form three-point range.

It appears it will take more of a presence in the paint for the Streeters to be successful down the stretch here in the playoffs, which start next Saturday.

The fact that the Streeters are getting a first round bye could pay dividends as well. They will have nine days before their next game. That's nine days to regroup after two tough losses. Nine days to find the groove that made them the top Class AA team in the state.

Final Score
ACGC           28   17  -  45
Sauk Centre   12   17  -  29

Season record: 23-2
Up next: sub-section semifinals on Saturday, March 6 at 6 p.m. vs. Melrose/Holdingford winner