Minix Sisters Lead Oregon-Davis
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
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Gabi Minix, a 5-foot-8 freshman, and sister Aubrey, a 5-9 sophomore, are the daughters of coach Terry Minix. And when they're in a game, it's almost like having a pair of coaches on the floor, too, their dad said.[[In-content Ad]]'You talk about a kid who knows what you're thinking before you do it,' the elder Minix said. 'Gabi's been around basketball since she was born, the same way with Aubrey. They both know what we're talking about on the floor and they're able to get the kids where they need to be.'
The Bobcats (24-3), who play Wood Memorial (19-8) for the girls Class A basketball championship on Saturday, were ranked third in the final girls coaches poll this season. They took out second-ranked Fort Wayne Canterbury in the regional tournament, while unranked Wood Memorial advanced with a victory over No. 1 Bloomfield.
'We always play teams that are taller than us,' said Minix, whose tallest starter is 5-10 Amber Boyle. 'So we're going to keep doing the things we're capable of doing, and that's getting up and down the floor and shooting the basketball.'
Boyle leads the Bobcats at 13 points a game, with Gabi Minix at 12.9 points and a team-high 9.9 assists. Aubrey Minix is scoring 12.6 points a game, mostly on 3-pointers, with all but eight of her 66 field goals this season from behind the arc.
'Aubrey's a great shooter,' Minix said. 'She missed the first 10 games with a stress fracture, and Gabi got to step up and do some things. As a freshman, she got to be the leader. ... It made her a better player, having to take charge all by herself. And the other kids were able to recognize she was going to be the team leader, both offensively and defensively.
'It's a lot easier for me as a coach to sit on the bench. I don't have to do as much yelling at the girls, because she can do it for me.'
Wood Memorial, also playing for its first state title in any sport, lost four of its first six games this season and four more later in the year. All the losses, though, were against schools in larger classes. Against Class A teams, the Trojans were 15-0 this season and 28-1 the past two years.
'As the season went along, this team came together a little bit,' coach Johnnie Bartley said. 'We didn't walk on the floor afraid to lose. There was a desire to win.
'We'd find ourselves behind at times, but the kids didn't panic. They dug down a little deeper and we started to win some games that maybe earlier in the year we'd lose.'
Wood Memorial will have a big height advantage over Oregon-Davis, led by 6-5 center Kaiti Cochren, who averages 16 points, 10.3 rebounds and seven blocked shots a game. Forward Keely Wilhite is a 6-2 junior who is averaging 9.7 points and a team-high 12 rebounds.
Like Oregon-Davis, the floor leader for Wood Memorial is a freshman, 5-6 guard Whitney Malin, who averages 7.9 points and 5.6 assists.
'I've got a team in every sense of the word,' Bartley said. 'A lot of kids that understand their roles and play their roles very well.'
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Gabi Minix, a 5-foot-8 freshman, and sister Aubrey, a 5-9 sophomore, are the daughters of coach Terry Minix. And when they're in a game, it's almost like having a pair of coaches on the floor, too, their dad said.[[In-content Ad]]'You talk about a kid who knows what you're thinking before you do it,' the elder Minix said. 'Gabi's been around basketball since she was born, the same way with Aubrey. They both know what we're talking about on the floor and they're able to get the kids where they need to be.'
The Bobcats (24-3), who play Wood Memorial (19-8) for the girls Class A basketball championship on Saturday, were ranked third in the final girls coaches poll this season. They took out second-ranked Fort Wayne Canterbury in the regional tournament, while unranked Wood Memorial advanced with a victory over No. 1 Bloomfield.
'We always play teams that are taller than us,' said Minix, whose tallest starter is 5-10 Amber Boyle. 'So we're going to keep doing the things we're capable of doing, and that's getting up and down the floor and shooting the basketball.'
Boyle leads the Bobcats at 13 points a game, with Gabi Minix at 12.9 points and a team-high 9.9 assists. Aubrey Minix is scoring 12.6 points a game, mostly on 3-pointers, with all but eight of her 66 field goals this season from behind the arc.
'Aubrey's a great shooter,' Minix said. 'She missed the first 10 games with a stress fracture, and Gabi got to step up and do some things. As a freshman, she got to be the leader. ... It made her a better player, having to take charge all by herself. And the other kids were able to recognize she was going to be the team leader, both offensively and defensively.
'It's a lot easier for me as a coach to sit on the bench. I don't have to do as much yelling at the girls, because she can do it for me.'
Wood Memorial, also playing for its first state title in any sport, lost four of its first six games this season and four more later in the year. All the losses, though, were against schools in larger classes. Against Class A teams, the Trojans were 15-0 this season and 28-1 the past two years.
'As the season went along, this team came together a little bit,' coach Johnnie Bartley said. 'We didn't walk on the floor afraid to lose. There was a desire to win.
'We'd find ourselves behind at times, but the kids didn't panic. They dug down a little deeper and we started to win some games that maybe earlier in the year we'd lose.'
Wood Memorial will have a big height advantage over Oregon-Davis, led by 6-5 center Kaiti Cochren, who averages 16 points, 10.3 rebounds and seven blocked shots a game. Forward Keely Wilhite is a 6-2 junior who is averaging 9.7 points and a team-high 12 rebounds.
Like Oregon-Davis, the floor leader for Wood Memorial is a freshman, 5-6 guard Whitney Malin, who averages 7.9 points and 5.6 assists.
'I've got a team in every sense of the word,' Bartley said. 'A lot of kids that understand their roles and play their roles very well.'
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