Slow Start Sinks Vikings Ship Against Warsaw
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
MENTONE - Once again, the start turned out to be the bitter end for Tippecanoe Valley's girls basketball team.
Slow starts by Tippecanoe Valley against rival Warsaw are nothing new. They've happened before. It happened again Friday as Warsaw jumped ahead 21-2 and won 50-27.
"We lost the game in the first three minutes," Valley coach Mike Walters said. "You look back, one of the most critical things for the outcome of the game was the tip, something we had worked on all week. We had the ball in our hands. We let them take it away from us.
"That was a key for us. We needed to get the ball and score on our first possession. We didn't. They got the ball and scored. It was all downhill from that point on in the first half."
Hastening Valley's descent were Warsaw forwards Tiffany Ross and Sam Wideman. The 6-foot-1 Wideman finished the game with 13 points and 11 rebounds, while the 5-10 Ross chipped in with 12 points and five rebounds.
The duo combined to snare 11 rebounds in the first half, and when halftime arrived to pause the drubbing, Warsaw had outrebounded the Vikings 21-7 and led 29-6.
Coming in, Walters felt two things would determine whether Valley would stay in the game. One was scoring after the opening tipoff. The second was staying close to even in rebounding.
Valley failed in both categories.
The Vikings had more fouls (14) and turnovers (eight) than points at halftime.
"The first half we played well in every phase of the game except foul shooting," Warsaw coach Will Wienhorst said. "Our goal is to get to the free-throw line. We got to the line 18 times. We hit only eight.
"Overall, the first half went as well as I could have expected it this early in the season."
Even without 6-foot-2 center Katie Elliott, Warsaw dominated Valley in the paint, offensively and defensively. Warsaw made 19 of 35 field goals in the game. Of the 19 field goals, 16 came in the point. Valley made only six field goals inside all evening.
Wideman sparked Warsaw's 21-2 run, scoring five straight points. She hit a three-pointer with 2:21 left in the first quarter then followed that by grabbing a rebound and going coast to coast for a layup. Wideman's outburst bumped Warsaw's lead from 5-2 to 10-2.
Wideman tipped in-bounds passes, blocked shots, dribbled the ball up the court like a point guard, posted up down low, hit outside shots and hit inside shots.
In short, she did everything.
"How Sam played tonight is how she's been playing in practice," Wienhorst said. "She's going to have a tremendous year and will complement our team a lot."
Walters' halftime speech? There was no first half.
"At halftime, what we talked about was we were going to start the game over," he said. "We did play them even the second half. That's great for the second half. The problem is, the game's 32 minutes long. We have to get ready to go at the beginning."
Indeed, if slow starts by Valley have been a common thread when these teams get together, another has been the Vikings' ability to find a way to battle in the second half. Both teams scored 21 points in the last half.
By then, it was academic. The game was too far out of hand.
Kelly Walters led Valley with nine points, while Andria Parker added eight points and nine rebounds.
"We're working really hard in practices," Wienhorst said. "I want our games to be easier than our practices. They got out there, and the game was easier. That's why we got off to a good start." [[In-content Ad]]
MENTONE - Once again, the start turned out to be the bitter end for Tippecanoe Valley's girls basketball team.
Slow starts by Tippecanoe Valley against rival Warsaw are nothing new. They've happened before. It happened again Friday as Warsaw jumped ahead 21-2 and won 50-27.
"We lost the game in the first three minutes," Valley coach Mike Walters said. "You look back, one of the most critical things for the outcome of the game was the tip, something we had worked on all week. We had the ball in our hands. We let them take it away from us.
"That was a key for us. We needed to get the ball and score on our first possession. We didn't. They got the ball and scored. It was all downhill from that point on in the first half."
Hastening Valley's descent were Warsaw forwards Tiffany Ross and Sam Wideman. The 6-foot-1 Wideman finished the game with 13 points and 11 rebounds, while the 5-10 Ross chipped in with 12 points and five rebounds.
The duo combined to snare 11 rebounds in the first half, and when halftime arrived to pause the drubbing, Warsaw had outrebounded the Vikings 21-7 and led 29-6.
Coming in, Walters felt two things would determine whether Valley would stay in the game. One was scoring after the opening tipoff. The second was staying close to even in rebounding.
Valley failed in both categories.
The Vikings had more fouls (14) and turnovers (eight) than points at halftime.
"The first half we played well in every phase of the game except foul shooting," Warsaw coach Will Wienhorst said. "Our goal is to get to the free-throw line. We got to the line 18 times. We hit only eight.
"Overall, the first half went as well as I could have expected it this early in the season."
Even without 6-foot-2 center Katie Elliott, Warsaw dominated Valley in the paint, offensively and defensively. Warsaw made 19 of 35 field goals in the game. Of the 19 field goals, 16 came in the point. Valley made only six field goals inside all evening.
Wideman sparked Warsaw's 21-2 run, scoring five straight points. She hit a three-pointer with 2:21 left in the first quarter then followed that by grabbing a rebound and going coast to coast for a layup. Wideman's outburst bumped Warsaw's lead from 5-2 to 10-2.
Wideman tipped in-bounds passes, blocked shots, dribbled the ball up the court like a point guard, posted up down low, hit outside shots and hit inside shots.
In short, she did everything.
"How Sam played tonight is how she's been playing in practice," Wienhorst said. "She's going to have a tremendous year and will complement our team a lot."
Walters' halftime speech? There was no first half.
"At halftime, what we talked about was we were going to start the game over," he said. "We did play them even the second half. That's great for the second half. The problem is, the game's 32 minutes long. We have to get ready to go at the beginning."
Indeed, if slow starts by Valley have been a common thread when these teams get together, another has been the Vikings' ability to find a way to battle in the second half. Both teams scored 21 points in the last half.
By then, it was academic. The game was too far out of hand.
Kelly Walters led Valley with nine points, while Andria Parker added eight points and nine rebounds.
"We're working really hard in practices," Wienhorst said. "I want our games to be easier than our practices. They got out there, and the game was easier. That's why we got off to a good start." [[In-content Ad]]