Centralia eventually had a 30-point lead in the fourth quarter on Wednesday, but it didn’t feel easy.
The Lady Panthers beat Clarence Cannon Conference foe Macon 55-26 in the Centralia …
This item is available in full to subscribers.
We have recently launched a new and improved website. To continue reading, you will need to either log into your subscriber account, or purchase a new subscription.
If you are a digital subscriber with an active subscription, or you are a print subscriber who had access to our previous website, then you already have an account here. Just reset your password if you have not yet logged in to your account on this new site.
If you are a current print subscriber and did not have a user account on our previous website, you can set up a free website account by clicking here.
Otherwise, click here to view your options for subscribing.
Please log in to continue |
Centralia eventually had a 30-point lead in the fourth quarter on Wednesday, but it didn’t feel easy.
The Lady Panthers beat Clarence Cannon Conference foe Macon 55-26 in the Centralia tournament semifinals to advance to their fourth straight tournament title game and become champions for the fourth consecutive year. They held their fourth straight opponent to under 30 points.
Before playing Boonville (4-0) at 8 p.m. Friday, head coach Megan Brinkmann said Centralia (5-0) was tested against Macon (3-2). While the Tigerettes didn't have the offense to match the Lady Panthers, they didn’t allow Centralia to pull away until late in the game.
“It was so physical,” Brinkmann said. “They gave us their best shot. Eventually, we settled in defensively and we were able to get some stops and push in transition.”
Brinkmann said having a test like Wednesday will help Centralia before an important game on Friday. Macon didn’t give the Lady Panthers much space and wasn’t afraid of initiating contact, even when the ball was being inbounded.
“We have to engage physicality,” Brinkmann said. “If they’re going to post us or going to be physical in different ways, we have to match that. We can’t sit on our heels. If they’re going to beat us in the post, then we have to beat them to the spot. You can’t let them post on the block, and you can’t get face cut.”
Ryenn Gordon had to deal with much of the physicality as the point guard, but she was able to break free in transition and find open lanes to the rim. Gordon led Centralia with 20 points and three steals.
Macon scored the first four points of the game, and then Gordon was called for a player control foul charging in transition. The Lady Panthers reset to take an 11-4 lead after the first quarter and 26-9 advantage into halftime.
“We got sped up a little bit at the start,” Gordon said. “Calming ourselves down and playing at our own pace definitely helps. We got into some sets and figured out what defense they were running.”
Gordon said Macon ran a “junk defense” the team hadn’t seen before and cycled through other defenses like man-to-man and zone to keep Centralia on its toes. Still, the Lady Panthers found their points.
Braylin Brunkhorst had 10 points and six rebounds, Blakely Sowers finished with eight points and eight rebounds, Ealynne Bostick had eight points and two 3-pointers, and Brooklyn Hardin had seven points.
“Our ball screen reads were working,” Gordon said. “I had a lot of success off of it. Later in the game, whenever they started playing off of me on the ball screens, our slip was there and I got Blakely a lot of open baskets.”
Reece Barnett led Macon with 15 points in its previous win on Monday against North Callaway, but Barnett only had six points and one field goal against Centralia. She still led the team along with seven rebounds.
Brinkmann said Centralia paid attention to her, but she said Macon was more difficult because of its hard-nosed work. Mostly, she said the Lady Panthers made it difficult on the Tigerettes.
“They did their best work off the dirty work — offensive rebounds inside the paint,” Brinkmann said. “They had a post presence that hurt us at times. Their screen roll action and we’re switching, and they did a good job of finding people.”
Gordon said Centralia should have a good chance at a fourth straight title if its defense plays as well as it has this season.
“Brinkmann has always put a big focus on our defense,” Gordon said. “Working on defense all the time helps a lot because there’s not a lot of teams that are holding good opponents to under 30 points a game.”
Brinkmann said she is happy that her seniors could have as many championships as years in school. That feat will only be accomplished if Centralia plays like it can.
“Enjoy the moment because the fact that Braylin, Madilynn (Hunter) and Madi (Johnson) have been here four years in a row doesn’t happen to a lot of people and doesn’t happen in every program,” Brinkmann said. “We talk about gratitude and being humble and grateful. That being said, we’ve got a job to do.”
