Well Worth The Hype
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
SYRACUSE - Love him or hate him, the late Howard Cosell would turn a Monday Night Football game into an event, make it seem larger than life, make you feel you just had to tune in or risk missing something great if you didn't.
When Warsaw's girls basketball team faced and beat Wawasee 65-60 Wednesday night, it was more than a game. It was an event.
The band played, the cheerleaders yelled and local sportscasters lugged bulky television cameras to the top corners of the gym for this game. Radio personalities who were not calling the game showed up to watch the game. Wawasee Athletic Director Mary Hurley estimated 1,500 people attended, the Warriors' biggest girls basketball crowd in several years.
The gym crackled with an electricity normally reserved for postseason games.
"This was a big game for one reason," Warsaw coach Will Wienhorst said. "Because of all the hype. This was a tournament game."
Said Wawasee coach Kem Zolman: "This was like a boys basketball game. It was great for girls basketball."
Both teams entered 9-2. Warsaw was 3-0 in the Northern Lakes Conference, while Wawasee was 1-1 in the NLC.
And if the conference clash angle wasn't enough, the game featured the top scorer in the state, Wawasee freshman guard Shanna Zolman, who averages 31.8 points per game.
But Warsaw, led by 6-foot-2 senior center Katie Elliott, stole the show on Wawasee's home floor.
Elliott, who averages 17.1 points per game, hit 9 of 14 field goals, scored 31 and grabbed 13 rebounds.
But the key numbers for her were 12 of 13, the number of free throws she made and attempted.
Fueled by Elliott's 10 fourth-quarter points, the Tigers went from trailing 45-37 after three quarters to winning by five. Even though the Tigers beat Manchester 53-34 Tuesday night while Wawasee did not play, they still closed strong.
They outscored Wawasee 28-15 in the fourth.
And no, Elliott had no doubts, even trailing 45-37, who would win.
"I wasn't nervous," Elliott said. "I knew our team had the strength. I knew we had the fight in us. There was no doubt in my mind."
One person she could not speak for was her coach. Asked if he believed the way she believed, Elliott smiled and said, "Yeah, I think he knew we would do it."
Warsaw assigned two people to chase after Zolman, guards Kara Kesler and Hilary O'Connell. When Kesler was on the bench, O'Connell shadowed Zolman. When O'Connell was on the bench, Kesler shadowed Zolman.
Zolman led all scorers with 33. But she is shooting better than 50 percent this year, and she hit just 12 of 29 (41.4 percent) against Warsaw. Take away a hot stretch in the third quarter, when she hit 5 of 7, she was just 7 of 22 (31.8) over the other three quarters. She started the game by forcing shots, and she ended the game by forcing shots.
"This was the first time all year she played like a freshman," Kem Zolman, also Shanna's father, said. "Tonight she showed she has a few chinks in her armor."
Warsaw won the game for several reasons, but arguably the biggest two were trips to the free-throw line and frontcourt play. The Warriors committed 16 fouls in the second half, sending the Tigers to the line 20 times in the half. They hit 14.
Warsaw finished the game 18 of 26 from the free-throw line, while Wawasee was 9 of 11.
"We made some really silly fouls 84 feet away from the basket," Kem Zolman said. "We put them on the line way too much. We have to learn to play defense without slapping."
Led by Elliott, Warsaw's frontcourt outscored Wawasee's frontcourt 45-15. If the free-throw line was one reason Warsaw won, another was its inside game that Wawasee could not stop once the Tigers dumped the ball - usually to Elliott -Êinto the low post. The Tigers ran a basic high-low play that worked at the start and worked at the end. A girl standing near the free-throw line tossed the ball to Elliott, who was taller than everyone else, for two easy points.
"(Warsaw) has better people underneath," Kem Zolman said, "and they are a deeper team. But we got a lot of mileage out of our big people tonight."
All the Warrior fouls did not occur because a desperate Wawasee team was fouling to stop the clock. The Tigers were shooting one-and-one free throws in the third quarter, yet Wawasee led by eight after three quarters. The Warriors turned a 22-20 halftime deficit into an eight-point lead entering the fourth thanks to Zolman, who scored 14 as the Warriors outscored Warsaw 25-15 in the quarter. The Warriors' biggest leads of the game were 10 at 39-29 and 43-33 in the third quarter.
"When we got down, we relaxed and started playing basketball," Wienhorst said. "We shot a lot of bad shots early. I think it was because of the crowd. That bothered our nerves early.
"When we got down, our girls did what they were supposed to do: they got the ball inside."
The foul trouble caught up with Wawasee in the fourth quarter. Warsaw went to the line 12 times and hit 11. Elliott was money, attempting eight and hitting all eight.
"I'm fine shooting free throws," Elliott said. "It's no big deal."
After scoring 37 points in the first three quarters combined, Warsaw scored 28 in the fourth. When the Tigers weren't hitting from the line, they were hitting from the field. They hit 8 of 9 field goals. They missed two shots - one free throw and one field goal - in the last eight minutes.
As hot as Warsaw was in the fourth, Wawasee was that cold. The Warriors hit just 4 of 17 field goals. Only 2:10 into the fourth quarter, Warsaw turned a 45-37 deficit into a 48-47 lead. The Tigers never trailed again.
"Between the third and fourth quarters, I told our girls the only way we'd lose is if we kicked it away," Kem Zolman said. "We did. We puked it up a couple of times."
Warsaw, 10-2 overall and 4-0 in the NLC, hosts its Tiger Tournament at 12:30 p.m. Saturday. Also in the tournament are Perry Meridian, Valparaiso and Mount Vernon. Warsaw meets Mount Vernon at 12:30 p.m. Valparaiso and Perry Meridian will follow.
Wawasee, 9-3 overall and 1-2 in the NLC, hosts Tippecanoe Valley at 6:15 p.m. Wednesday.
"When we played NorthWood (a 79-42 Dec. 15 loss), we weren't ready to play at that level," Kem Zolman said. "Since then, we worked our tails off to get to that level. We were using this game to tell us if we were there.
"We still have some work to do."
WARSAW 65 WAWASEE 60
Warsaw (10-2) 14 8 15 28 -Ê65
Wawasee (9-3) 8 12 25 15 -Ê60
Warsaw FG FT A S R Pts.
Elliott (C) 9-14 12-13 2 2 13 31
Parker (F) 4-7 1-3 1 1 5 9
Rooney (F) 2-4 1-2 1 0 5 5
Zaugg (G) 0-3 1-3 0 0 1 1
Kesler (G) 0-2 0-0 2 0 2 0
Colt 4-6 2-2 0 1 5 11
O'Connell 2-4 1-3 0 0 3 6
Taylor 1-1 0-0 3 1 5 2
Overton 0-0 0-0 1 0 1 0
Conley 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0
Totals 22-41 18-26 10 5 40 65
Wawasee FG FT A S R Pts.
Zolman (G) 12-29 6-6 2 5 2 33
Lamb (C) 5-14 0-0 0 1 10 10
Price (G) 2-6 0-0 3 1 2 6
Frantz (G) 1-6 2-2 4 2 3 4
Hymer (F) 1-2 0-1 1 0 1 2
Hunziker 1-5 0-0 0 0 0 2
Hunt 1-4 0-0 0 1 1 2
Lamb 0-1 1-2 0 0 1 1
Gunden 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0
Totals 23-67 9-11 10 10 20 60
Three-point goals -ÊWawasee 5-16 (Zolman 3-10, Price 2-4, Frantz 0-1, Lamb 0-1), Warsaw 3-6 (Elliott 1-2, O'Connell 1-2, Colt 1-1, Kesler 0-1). Turnovers - Warsaw 27, Wawasee 15. Total fouls - Warsaw 13, Wawasee 24. Fouled out - Hymer.
Officials -ÊTim Smith, Jay Smith.
JV: WARSAW 44, WAWASEE 28
Warsaw (8-4) scoring -ÊAmie Poling 12, Janna Knisely 8, Shara Becker 5, Stephanie DeRenzo 4, Andrea Saldivar 4, Angela O'Connell 3, Erin Cook 2, Rachael Conley 2, Kyla Stanley 2, Ashley Wyatt 2.
Wawasee (3-7) scoring -ÊJessica Henderson 7, Kim Morgan 5, Dusty Krull 5, Bria Pletcher 3, Amy Francis 3, Mandi Sawyer 2, Carie Lundy 2, Annette Lamb 1. [[In-content Ad]]
SYRACUSE - Love him or hate him, the late Howard Cosell would turn a Monday Night Football game into an event, make it seem larger than life, make you feel you just had to tune in or risk missing something great if you didn't.
When Warsaw's girls basketball team faced and beat Wawasee 65-60 Wednesday night, it was more than a game. It was an event.
The band played, the cheerleaders yelled and local sportscasters lugged bulky television cameras to the top corners of the gym for this game. Radio personalities who were not calling the game showed up to watch the game. Wawasee Athletic Director Mary Hurley estimated 1,500 people attended, the Warriors' biggest girls basketball crowd in several years.
The gym crackled with an electricity normally reserved for postseason games.
"This was a big game for one reason," Warsaw coach Will Wienhorst said. "Because of all the hype. This was a tournament game."
Said Wawasee coach Kem Zolman: "This was like a boys basketball game. It was great for girls basketball."
Both teams entered 9-2. Warsaw was 3-0 in the Northern Lakes Conference, while Wawasee was 1-1 in the NLC.
And if the conference clash angle wasn't enough, the game featured the top scorer in the state, Wawasee freshman guard Shanna Zolman, who averages 31.8 points per game.
But Warsaw, led by 6-foot-2 senior center Katie Elliott, stole the show on Wawasee's home floor.
Elliott, who averages 17.1 points per game, hit 9 of 14 field goals, scored 31 and grabbed 13 rebounds.
But the key numbers for her were 12 of 13, the number of free throws she made and attempted.
Fueled by Elliott's 10 fourth-quarter points, the Tigers went from trailing 45-37 after three quarters to winning by five. Even though the Tigers beat Manchester 53-34 Tuesday night while Wawasee did not play, they still closed strong.
They outscored Wawasee 28-15 in the fourth.
And no, Elliott had no doubts, even trailing 45-37, who would win.
"I wasn't nervous," Elliott said. "I knew our team had the strength. I knew we had the fight in us. There was no doubt in my mind."
One person she could not speak for was her coach. Asked if he believed the way she believed, Elliott smiled and said, "Yeah, I think he knew we would do it."
Warsaw assigned two people to chase after Zolman, guards Kara Kesler and Hilary O'Connell. When Kesler was on the bench, O'Connell shadowed Zolman. When O'Connell was on the bench, Kesler shadowed Zolman.
Zolman led all scorers with 33. But she is shooting better than 50 percent this year, and she hit just 12 of 29 (41.4 percent) against Warsaw. Take away a hot stretch in the third quarter, when she hit 5 of 7, she was just 7 of 22 (31.8) over the other three quarters. She started the game by forcing shots, and she ended the game by forcing shots.
"This was the first time all year she played like a freshman," Kem Zolman, also Shanna's father, said. "Tonight she showed she has a few chinks in her armor."
Warsaw won the game for several reasons, but arguably the biggest two were trips to the free-throw line and frontcourt play. The Warriors committed 16 fouls in the second half, sending the Tigers to the line 20 times in the half. They hit 14.
Warsaw finished the game 18 of 26 from the free-throw line, while Wawasee was 9 of 11.
"We made some really silly fouls 84 feet away from the basket," Kem Zolman said. "We put them on the line way too much. We have to learn to play defense without slapping."
Led by Elliott, Warsaw's frontcourt outscored Wawasee's frontcourt 45-15. If the free-throw line was one reason Warsaw won, another was its inside game that Wawasee could not stop once the Tigers dumped the ball - usually to Elliott -Êinto the low post. The Tigers ran a basic high-low play that worked at the start and worked at the end. A girl standing near the free-throw line tossed the ball to Elliott, who was taller than everyone else, for two easy points.
"(Warsaw) has better people underneath," Kem Zolman said, "and they are a deeper team. But we got a lot of mileage out of our big people tonight."
All the Warrior fouls did not occur because a desperate Wawasee team was fouling to stop the clock. The Tigers were shooting one-and-one free throws in the third quarter, yet Wawasee led by eight after three quarters. The Warriors turned a 22-20 halftime deficit into an eight-point lead entering the fourth thanks to Zolman, who scored 14 as the Warriors outscored Warsaw 25-15 in the quarter. The Warriors' biggest leads of the game were 10 at 39-29 and 43-33 in the third quarter.
"When we got down, we relaxed and started playing basketball," Wienhorst said. "We shot a lot of bad shots early. I think it was because of the crowd. That bothered our nerves early.
"When we got down, our girls did what they were supposed to do: they got the ball inside."
The foul trouble caught up with Wawasee in the fourth quarter. Warsaw went to the line 12 times and hit 11. Elliott was money, attempting eight and hitting all eight.
"I'm fine shooting free throws," Elliott said. "It's no big deal."
After scoring 37 points in the first three quarters combined, Warsaw scored 28 in the fourth. When the Tigers weren't hitting from the line, they were hitting from the field. They hit 8 of 9 field goals. They missed two shots - one free throw and one field goal - in the last eight minutes.
As hot as Warsaw was in the fourth, Wawasee was that cold. The Warriors hit just 4 of 17 field goals. Only 2:10 into the fourth quarter, Warsaw turned a 45-37 deficit into a 48-47 lead. The Tigers never trailed again.
"Between the third and fourth quarters, I told our girls the only way we'd lose is if we kicked it away," Kem Zolman said. "We did. We puked it up a couple of times."
Warsaw, 10-2 overall and 4-0 in the NLC, hosts its Tiger Tournament at 12:30 p.m. Saturday. Also in the tournament are Perry Meridian, Valparaiso and Mount Vernon. Warsaw meets Mount Vernon at 12:30 p.m. Valparaiso and Perry Meridian will follow.
Wawasee, 9-3 overall and 1-2 in the NLC, hosts Tippecanoe Valley at 6:15 p.m. Wednesday.
"When we played NorthWood (a 79-42 Dec. 15 loss), we weren't ready to play at that level," Kem Zolman said. "Since then, we worked our tails off to get to that level. We were using this game to tell us if we were there.
"We still have some work to do."
WARSAW 65 WAWASEE 60
Warsaw (10-2) 14 8 15 28 -Ê65
Wawasee (9-3) 8 12 25 15 -Ê60
Warsaw FG FT A S R Pts.
Elliott (C) 9-14 12-13 2 2 13 31
Parker (F) 4-7 1-3 1 1 5 9
Rooney (F) 2-4 1-2 1 0 5 5
Zaugg (G) 0-3 1-3 0 0 1 1
Kesler (G) 0-2 0-0 2 0 2 0
Colt 4-6 2-2 0 1 5 11
O'Connell 2-4 1-3 0 0 3 6
Taylor 1-1 0-0 3 1 5 2
Overton 0-0 0-0 1 0 1 0
Conley 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0
Totals 22-41 18-26 10 5 40 65
Wawasee FG FT A S R Pts.
Zolman (G) 12-29 6-6 2 5 2 33
Lamb (C) 5-14 0-0 0 1 10 10
Price (G) 2-6 0-0 3 1 2 6
Frantz (G) 1-6 2-2 4 2 3 4
Hymer (F) 1-2 0-1 1 0 1 2
Hunziker 1-5 0-0 0 0 0 2
Hunt 1-4 0-0 0 1 1 2
Lamb 0-1 1-2 0 0 1 1
Gunden 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0
Totals 23-67 9-11 10 10 20 60
Three-point goals -ÊWawasee 5-16 (Zolman 3-10, Price 2-4, Frantz 0-1, Lamb 0-1), Warsaw 3-6 (Elliott 1-2, O'Connell 1-2, Colt 1-1, Kesler 0-1). Turnovers - Warsaw 27, Wawasee 15. Total fouls - Warsaw 13, Wawasee 24. Fouled out - Hymer.
Officials -ÊTim Smith, Jay Smith.
JV: WARSAW 44, WAWASEE 28
Warsaw (8-4) scoring -ÊAmie Poling 12, Janna Knisely 8, Shara Becker 5, Stephanie DeRenzo 4, Andrea Saldivar 4, Angela O'Connell 3, Erin Cook 2, Rachael Conley 2, Kyla Stanley 2, Ashley Wyatt 2.
Wawasee (3-7) scoring -ÊJessica Henderson 7, Kim Morgan 5, Dusty Krull 5, Bria Pletcher 3, Amy Francis 3, Mandi Sawyer 2, Carie Lundy 2, Annette Lamb 1. [[In-content Ad]]