Out & About: Hopkins/Bloomington Kennedy

#1 posting 3.19.2006

MN AAAA Championship
Hopkins 65, Bloomington Kennedy 48

#1 Hopkins was the only #1 to make it to the finish line in a 65-48 redemption victory over Kennedy. Kennedy defeated Hopkins last year in overtime. Tonight's game featured a tour de force comeback and showcased a strong defensive game plan by Hopkins. Kennedy held the lead for the first 39:07 minutes of the game.

Kennedy led early, but something was up even then. Heather MacPhie was the leading Kennedy scorer with 11 points at half. That was a strange sign. It was a sign that underneath the surface Hopkins' defensive plan was working. The 2/3 zone was packing it inside and encouraging the long distance dialing. At half Kennedy had taken nine 3s with MacPhie cashing all three. Another key was the foul situation only had five, but Jenna Smith had three and only played 11 minutes. The other player with fouls was Tera Steinbauer with two. That changed the natural play and movement of both players. Kennedy held the lead at half 27-24, but both teams were not that efficient in the first half. Neither team had any prolonged droughts, but they didn't string any possessions together either. That was going to change in the second half.

Ashly Robinson of Kennedy was the only Kennedy player able to score in the first part of the half. She scored the first 12 points for Kennedy. Their biggest lead took place at the 13:52 mark of the second half with Robinson's basket and free throw to make it 36-29. Caitlyn Rowland's 3 started what would soon be a tidal wave. Hopkins high octane offense kicked into overdrive. The Royals looked to attack the basket and stayed aggressive. Meanwhile Kennedy on the offensive end forced shots beyond the arc. Jenna Smith was one that was pressing her game at that point. Hopkins closed out the game with 36-12 run. The impressive number is the possession streak--Hopkins finished out the game with 18/22 on possessions with strings of 7 and two fours. Kennedy could not generate any offense from their big three. In their last 18 possessions they scored only three times with Smith and Robinson only scoring once each. Jillian Schulre contributed 13 points. One key possession was when Schurle made a free throw, but missed the second. Wilkinson rebounded and eventually the ball was blocked out of bounds and Wilkinson took a hard fall. In the ensuing out of bounds play Schurle scored to make it 46-44. Smith scored her last high school points to tie it at 46. Hopkins took over the game for good on Rowland's drive, basket, and one to make the score 49-46. After that Jenna Smith did not have a possession, Robinson had four, and Steinbauer had one.

The defensive game plan, efficient offense, composed players all equaled the second state title in three years for Coach Cosgriff and the Hopkins Royals. It was an outstanding effort to end the high school season.

player, points, possessions, pp100, floor %
Hopkins Player Evaluations
Starters
Abby Greene 9, 11, 81.8, .545 point guard kept team focused, wasn't rattled
Jackie Hiebert 12, 12, 100.0, .500 again lifted her perfomance. started slowly, but came on. attacked and made big time moves against the Kennedy front line
Tiana Wilkinson 2, 2, 100.0, .500 gets the job done. scrambles for loose balls, physical presence.
Caitlyn Rowland 8, 9, 88.9, .333 made the 3 shot that set in motion the Hopkins run.
Jillian Schurle 29, 17, 170.6, .824 look at the numbers. An outstanding performance. had muted performance in the semis. 14 points in the first half when things were on the verge she pulled through with key shots. not phased, focused.
Bench
Stephanie Sension 5, 5, 100.0, .400 came in and delivered a 3 ball that caught Kennedy off guard.

Bloomington Kennedy Player Evaluations
Starters
Tara Steinbauer 4, 8, 50.0, .250 RF: not visible in the second half. She only had two possessions in the second half. foul problems.
Tasha Mrosak 0, 4, 0.0, .000 RF: shot consistency
Ashly Robinson 16, 15, 106.7, .467 scored the first 12 points in the second half as others were silent. but: RF: only scored two more points the with 12:17 left.
Heather MacPhie 11, 10, 110.0, .400 on fire the first half with three 3s. Also led with assists. RF: halftime cooled her shot, passes were forced in the second half.
Jenna Smith 8, 7, 114.3, .571 RF: forced 3s instead of working the blocks. fouls hampered her game. played tenative defense the rest of the way in the second half.
Bench
Shakila Boler 7, 9, 77.8, .333 a lot asked of an 8th grader. made some shots, but RF: more shots were missed.
Katie Lukanich 2, 3, 66.7, .333
Melanie Wigen 0, 1, 0.0, .000
Brittany Zins 0, 1, 0.0, .000
Trench player: Schurle won't be denied.

BY THE NUMBERS
Hopkins 65, 57, 114.0, .544
Bloomington Kennedy 48, 58, 82.3, .345
Second half
Hopkins 44, 31, 141.9, .677
Kennedy 21, 32 65.6, .281
Last 12 minutes
Hopkins 36, 22, 163.6, .818
Kennedy 12, 21, 57.1, .238
I know I might be obsessive about these numbers, but they show the utter domination to close the game.
Bench: Kennedy 9, Hopkins 5
Paint ball: Hopkins 24, Kennedy 18. The height advantage was not an advantage and Hopkins was the aggressor.
made free throws: Hopkins 20, Kennedy 6. Kennedy only went to the line eight times the entire game.
3 attempts: Kennedy 22, Hopkins 10. The difference--Hopkins converted five, Kennedy only four.

Next up: tomorrow morning with the latest from the papers.