North Harrison’s girls built up a big lead against an improving Maysville team and then held off their attempts to get back into the game, coming away with a 42-32 win in the first round of the South Harrison Tournament Tuesday night.
Payton Craig cut inside and got a pass from Olivia Babinski to give her team a 2-0 lead. Abby Huffaker countered with a free throw, but Craig scored off a drive and a putback and then hit Brandy Rivet for a 3-pointer to make it 9-1. Craig hit two free throws and then Kami Gibson hit Brandy Rivet at the top of the key to make it 14-1 late in the first.
But Maysville would not go away quietly in this one; they were out for revenge since North Harrison had beaten them in the softball quarterfinals to punch their ticket to Springfield. North Harrison held their leading scorer, Cat Whiteman (11 points per game) to 7 points, three of which were scored in the closing seconds when the game was decided. But several other Wolverines were able to find the range, and they were able to put pressure on North Harrison, forcing 15 turnovers for the game.
One such player was Emily Brown. Coming into the game averaging 1.5 points per game, she went off for Maysville, knocking down three closely guarded shots in a row to make it 14-7 early in the second. North Harrison countered as Payton Craig hit Brandy Rivet for a triple from the left wing, Addie Slaughter hit Craig for a driving layup, Rivet jumped a pass for a steal and score, and Craig hit a shot on the baseline to make it 23-7. Carly Rinehart hit Craig cutting inside to make it 24-7.
Maysville hung around for the remainder of the first half as they started breaking North Harrison’s press and getting to the rim. But Payton Craig hit Brandy Rivet from the baseline for a 3-pointer and got a 3-point play off a drive to give North Harrison its biggest lead at 36-15 in the third and Maysville never got any closer than the final score.
Payton Craig had 21 points for the game, as she did nothing to hurt her scoring average. She is now at 1,443 career points; she passed Jenny Coulson on the all-time scoring list this year and sits at third behind only her sister, Haley Craig (1,759 points), and Jill Wilcoxson (1,963 points). Brandy Rivet had 17 and Emma Craig 4.
Brandy Rivet and Olivia Babinski each had 1 block.
Payton Craig and Kami Gibson each had 8 boards to lead the Shamrocks. Gibson, a freshman, has earned more and more playing time as the season has progressed as she has shown a willingness to mix it up down low. Brandy Rivet and Carly Rinehart had 5; the latter, despite her small size and the fact that she is a freshman, has also shown a willingness to mix it up. She came off the bench against Princeton and grabbed three boards on three straight possessions as that game was threatening to get out of hand and has been improving steadily ever since. Emma Craig and Olivia Babinski had 4, while Addie Slaughter had 3.
Payton Craig had 4 assists, while Kami Gibson had 2, and Olivia Babinski, Addie Slaughter, Brandy Rivet, and Carly Rinehart each had 1.
Payton Craig had 11 tips, while Brandy Rivet had 5, Emma Craig 4, and Addie Slaughter 1.
Olivia Babinski had 5 steals to lead the Shamrocks. While she didn’t show up in the scoring column, her ability to pressure the ball and be in the right place in the right time in the first half helped fuel North Harrison’s early runs. Payton Craig had 4, Brandy Rivet 3, and Carly Rinehart and Addie Slaughter 1 each.
The boys were not as fortunate Tuesday night as they fell to Mercer 62-38 in the first round. Having graduated a lot from the team that lost to Worth County in the District Finals, Mercer has simply reloaded and ran up and down the floor at will against the Shamrocks. They dug themselves into a 16-3 hole after one as they turned the ball over 11 times in the period.
North Harrison turned around and played their best quarter of the year against the Cardinals in the second, cutting down on their turnovers and hitting some of their shots and attacking the basket against their powerhouse rivals. They shared the ball well, getting five people in the scoring column that period. It was capped off when Logan Craig hit a 30-footer at the buzzer to cut the Shamrocks deficit to 25-20.
Brett Emig did all he could in the third quarter along with Logan Craig. Logan Craig had 7 points in the period, while Emig added 6 as they twice cut it to four. But Mercer pulled back ahead by 45-35 at the end of three and then North Harrison went ice cold in the fourth. They couldn’t buy a bucket in that period, and Mercer was able to limit them to one shot down the court, which fueled their transition game in the period.
Logan Craig had 14 points to lead the Shamrocks. Brett Emig had 8, Collin Castleberry 7, Gavin Garrett 4, Steven Willhite and Collin Briggs 2, and Grant Claycomb 1.
Steven Willhite anchored the Shamrocks on the defensive end, getting 5 blocks, while Collin Briggs added 1.
Steven Willhite and Brett Emig had 8 boards for North Harrison. Collin Castleberry and Gavin Garrett along with Logan Huitt had 3 each, while Collin Briggs had 1.
Logan Huitt had 4 assists for the Shamrocks, while Logan Craig, Collin Castleberry, Steven Willhite, and Brett Emig all had 1.
Logan Craig had 6 tips to lead North Harrison. Collin Castleberry had 3, Steven Willhite and Gavin Garrett each had 2, and Logan Huitt and Brett Emig had 1 each.
Brett Emig had 4 steals, while Logan Craig, Logan Huitt, and Steven Willhite each had 1.
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