Out & About: Audubon/Davenport Assumption

#4 posting 3.7.2006

Iowa State Tournament 2A Quarterfinals game # 4
Audubon 72, Davenport Assumption 66

David picked up the stone and slew the giant and Audubon took up the battle in a huge upset. Assumption was #1 in 2A and Audubon was not ranked in the top 15. Assumption had the height, but Audubon had the heart. They also did not panic when they were down, and they were down fast.

Assumption zipped out to a 11-2 lead scoring on 5 of their first 7 possessions. Mallory Youngblut opened the scoring with a swish three from the left side. Adding to the total with four apiece was the inside combo of Kim Thissen and Olivia Hansen. Then a key thing happened. Audubon took a time out and coach Derek Sonderland must have reinspired the troops or at least got them to believe again. After the time out Audubon outscored Assumption 15-11. It might not sound like much, but it did wonders for the mind and Audubon found out they could play with the big girls from the east. Jodi Best provided the energy for Audubon with 9 points. Also an important trend with fouls had portent for the rest of the game. Audubon made five free throws the first quarter but Assumption only made five free throws for the first three quarters.

Assumption had a 24-17 lead early in the quarter and that was the largest it would be. Audubon was much more efficient in their possessions with Kati Jo Christenson coming to life with five points including the three that tied the game at 24. Olivia Hanson, normaly inside answered with her own 3 and Assumpiton led 27-24. After that Audubon finished the half with a 13-5 run. They took the lead on a Christenson old fashioned three point play with 2:33 to go until half. Christenson also dropped a three as the horn sounded and Audubon rolled into half with a 37-32 lead. Christenson and her 14 points were a welcome addition after nothing in the first quarter.
Part of Assumption's problem was that only two players were involved with scoring and Hansen had 8 of them.

Assumption had only one loss coming into the game and they were not going to just fade away. They opened the third quarter with a 6-1 run to tie the game at 38. The last tie was at 42. Audubon never trailed or was tied after that point. The quarter ended with Audubon clinging to a 52-49 lead.

Assumption whitled the lead to 54-53 on Gabbie Binion's basket. Binion did not score until the last quarter, another Assumption problem. After Binion's basket Christensen answered from downtown and Audubon was back up 57-53. Two more possessions resulting in scores made it 60-53, but the news was getting bleak for Assumption. Kim Thissen fouled out. The rest of the game it was cat and mouse as Audubon went to the line frequently. In the last 3:05 Audubon's last 10 points came at the line. Assumption could not make up any ground and the mighty had fallen.

Height Matters: DA 5-11, Audubon 5-7.2 So it was a David vs Goliath battle on a couple different levels.
Department of defense: Audubon 2/3.

Player, points, possessions, pp100, floor %
Audubon Player Evaluations
Starters
Kati Jo Christensen 28, 23, 121.7, .565 3 point bomber with four on the day all at important times. board and got position, physical. active and anticipates on d. kept composure during the heat from DA all through the game. RF: didn't come out of the gates on fire, but maybe that could be used as a good thing because she never lost faith in her shot or ability
Morgan Nelson 7, 8, 87.5, .500
Jessie Trager 3, 6, 50.0, .333
Jodi Best 21, 20, 105.0, .600 with a name like Best what did you expect? point guard, decent size, nice passer, good floor game. handled pressure with grace. RF: forced some passes
Brittany Denker 13, 10, 130.0, .800 played bigger than she is, drew fouls, got and maintained position. not afraid of getting hit made 7 free throws. RF: size for position post HS
Bench
Meg Hansen 0, 1, 0.0, .000

Davenport Assumption Player Evaluations
Starters
Marci Furlong 3, 5, 50.0, .333
Mallory Youngblut 9, 11, 81.8, .455 big player on the perimeter. good shot and range. sees the floor and gets players the ball so they can do something. RF: couldn't get her team to play unruffled.
Gabbie Binion 10, 15, 62.5, .250 RF: way too many turnovers forcing things that just weren't there, came to life on offense only in the fourth quarter.
Kim Thissen 12, 11, 109.1, .545 nice inside player with size and touch. RF: foul issues, didn't get position for rebounds
Olivia Hansen 20, 16, 125.0, .625 did board and is nice sized again. but: RF: again with the fouls. It is all about position and footwork and making correct decisions on d.
Bench
Sarah Walsh 0, 1, 0.0, .000
Desiree Baker 4, 3, 125.0, .667
Annie Smith 2, 1, 200.0, 1.000
Lauren Lybbert 6, 3, 200.0, 1.000 very effective player on offense. RF: didn't play all that much.
Trench Player: Kati Jo Christensen

BY THE NUMBERS
Audubon 72, 69, 104.3, .551
Davenport Assumption 66, 68, 97.1, .471
Bench: DA 12, Audubon 0
Paint: DA 38, Audubon 22
Points off Turnovers: Audubon 20, DA 9
2nd chance points: DA 11, Audubon 9
Fast Break: Audubon 8, DA 4

Next up Cedar Rapids Xavier vs Spirit Lake