Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
SYRACUSE -ÊBefore the girls basketball season started at Wawasee, coach Kem Zolman expected Jocelyn Higginbotham to be the 'junk lady' for the Wawasee team, the girl who picked up the offensive rebounds and got an occasional shot under the basket.
However, Higginbotham has proved to be much more than just a 'junk lady' for the Warriors.
In Wawasee's 92-66 Tuesday win over West Noble, Higginbotham scored 22 points and pulled down 12 rebounds for the Warriors.
"I can't say enough about Jocelyn," said Zolman. "She is playing with tremendous confidence, and that is wonderful for her. She is not the aggressive type, on the court or off. She is more laid back.
"Last week she scored 19, and she came back tonight to score 22. It doesn't surprise me that she is playing well. Jocelyn had a great week of practice and that carried over in this game. She is starting to draw attention inside, and teams are starting to have trouble trying to decide who to guard offensively. That is something we have been striving for.
"Right now Jocelyn is a vital part of our program. I just see her getting better and better."
Of course, Higginbotham got help from her teammate Shanna Zolman. Zolman scored five of her 31 total points in the first minute of play to give Wawasee a 5-0 lead.
Jessica Leach and Higginbotham got the next two baskets for Wawasee, and with 6:39 left in the first frame the Warriors held a 9-0 advantage.
The Warriors held the Chargers scoreless until the 6:07 mark when Allison Kavanaugh sent the first West Noble basket through the net.
By the end of the first quarter, Wawasee held a 29-12 lead.
The Warriors continued to pound away at the scoreboard through the second quarter as Higginbotham led the second-quarter Warrior charge with seven rebounds and 10 points on 5-of-6 shooting. By the end of the first half, Wawasee held a 55-29 advantage.
Once again in the third quarter, Wawasee took control early. After West Noble's Melissa Howard scored the first basket of the quarter with 6:40 left on the third-quarter clock. Then the Warrior offense kicked into gear.
Crystal Fawley hit a three-pointer that started a 13-0 Wawasee run. Higginbotham hit two baskets, Zolman hit a basket and two free throws, and Leach added a basket to give Wawasee a 68-31 advantage.
After three quarters, Wawasee was on top 76-37.
But West Noble fought back in the final quarter of play. The Chargers outscored the Warriors 29-16 in the last quarter as the Wawasee defense let down its guard.
"I thought we played 29 minutes of good defense tonight," said Kem Zolman. "The last three minutes, we just let things get away from us. It was a bit of a downer at the end of the game.
"We can score 90, we can score 100, but my main concern is defense. Tonight we played 29 minutes awfully tough, but we still need that last three minutes."
In the end, four Warriors scored in double figures -ÊShanna Zolman with 31, Higginbotham with 22, Leach with 13 and Meagan Wallen with 10.
Wawasee improves to 4-0 overall, while West Noble falls to 2-4. The Warriors host Culver Girls Academy Friday.
WAWASEE 92, WEST NOBLE 66
West Noble 12 17 8 29 - 66
Wawasee 29 26 21 16 - 92
West Noble FG FT R S Pts.
*Ramey 8-19 6-8 1 2 25
*Kavanaugh 2-6 1-2 1 1 5
Grimm 2-5 2-2 1 0 6
Vance 0-0 0-0 0 0 0
Wysong 1-2 0-0 1 1 2
*Gangwer 6-13 0-0 3 3 16
*Howard 4-7 0-2 1 0 4
*Parkison 2-4 0-0 3 0 4
*McFarren 2-3 9-14 9 0 4
Totals 25-59 9-14 20 6 66
Wawasee FG FT R S Pts.
*Zolman 11-23 7-7 9 5 31
Sorenson 0-0 1-2 1 0 1
*Henderson 2-4 0-0 3 1 4
Bradford 1-2 0-0 1 0 2
*Fawley 3-6 0-0 0 3 7
Lamb 1-2 0-0 1 0 2
Wallen 5-13 0-0 2 0 10
*Leach 6-8 1-7 10 1 13
*Higginbotham 10-11 2-2 12 4 22
Totals 39-68 11-18 38 15 92
Three-point goals -ÊWawasee 3-8 (Zolman 2-7, Fawley 1-1), West Noble 7-14 (Ramey 3-9, Gangwer 4-5). Turnovers -ÊWawasee 14, West Noble 21. Fouls -ÊWawasee 15, West Noble 11. Fouled out -ÊNone.
JV Score -ÊWAWASEE 43, WEST NOBLE 18
Wawasee scoring -ÊSorensen 7, Bender 7, Auer 11, Shock 2, Bradford 6, Lamb 4, Hoover 4, Camire 2
West Noble scoring -ÊVance 3, Weimer 4, Deckert 4, Durham 2, Wysong 5
