Community R-6 girls come back before 54-52 2OT loss to Sturgeon

The Lady Trojans couldn’t remember the last time they’ve played a double-overtime game.

Community R-6 girls, boys vs Sturgeon Photo Gallery

That question became relevant on Tuesday night after the Community R-6 girls had their 11-game winning streak against Central Activities Conference foe Sturgeon snapped on a 54-52 loss in double overtime at home, dropping a game to the Lady Bulldogs for the first time since 2018. The Lady Trojans trailed until around 30 seconds left in regulation when Brooklynn Glasgow tied the game at 42 with a 3-pointer.

The last recorded double-overtime game in the Lady Trojans’ history was Jan. 24, 2019, at the Sturgeon Tournament, when the eventual Class 1 third-place Community defeated eventual district champion South Callaway 62-59. The current-day Lady Trojans (4-4, 2-1 CAC) didn’t go quietly even after falling behind 54-49 with less than 10 seconds left because Kat Meyer — who checked in after Glasgow became the second Lady Trojan to foul out — hit a 3-pointer before they regained possession for a full-court inbound with 1.8 seconds left. Intended for Peyton Beamer around half court, the pass didn’t connect as the Lady Trojans and the crowd thought there might have been contact, but no foul was called to give them a chance at game-tying free throws.

“We set a pindown screen, and actually got the ball to Peyton around half court,” head coach Bob Curtis said. “The unfortunate part is there is a lot of contact and no call. It was a tough spot 40 feet from the basket to get a call but would have liked to have got a shot off.”

For a majority of the game, Sturgeon (4-3, 2-0 CAC) made it tough for Community to take clean shots as the Lady Bulldogs swarmed with double teams and had a mass of people waiting at the basket for a driving Lady Trojan. Curtis thought the Lady Trojans were “rushed” on some shots in the overtime periods.

What worked for Community was Kylie Brooks, who has become infamous to Sturgeon. Last season, Brooks finished with a double-double whenever she played the Lady Bulldogs, including one game with 20 rebounds that Curtis recalls. The boards reached that number yet again and were just a part of Brooks’ monster performance of 22 points, 20 rebounds, five blocks, three steals and a 10-for-14 clip at the free-throw line.

“She always plays well against them,” Curtis said. “She really did a nice job of getting to the line, and it’s just so hard to keep her off the boards.”

Other than Brooks, Community had some girls to count on in big moments, including Glasgow’s game-tying 3-pointer in regulation as part of her night of seven points and five rebounds. One possession after Glasgow missed the rim completely on a 3-point attempt, Brooks fed her from the post before knocking down the ensuing attempt. Peyton Beamer also had eight points and three steals, with half of her points happening in the two overtime periods.

Brooks had only shot four free throws through three quarters but started taking free shots in bunches in the fourth quarter as she became more aggressive going to the rim. She drained 5-for-8 free throws in the fourth quarter and then hit two free throws in the first overtime period to tie the game at 46 and send the contest to a second overtime.

“I’m happy about the effort but bummed about the outcome,” Curtis said. “It was a fun game for the kids, though.”

Curtis said Aydan Wilhite is somebody to watch for Sturgeon, and she did draw some fouls. Wilhite scored all six of her points on free throws, but the Lady Bulldogs found 31 points from their backcourt of Allie Heath and Brooklyn Daugherty. Heath led Sturgeon with 16 points and was 3-for-4 on free throws in the second overtime, and Dougherty followed with 15 points and three 3-pointers, including one to tie the game at 49 in the second overtime.

Heath hurt the Lady Trojans on the inside as she scored several times driving into the middle of lane and Dougherty stayed effective mostly on the perimeter. However, Rylee West had a key bucket for a 51-49 lead with a minute left in the second overtime. A few missed Community shots turned into Sturgeon free throws prior to Meyer’s 3-pointer.

“We did a pretty good job on (Wilhite) and Kylie really went after her in that matchup and got her in some foul trouble,” Curtis said. “We’re trying to put it all together and trying to get consistent right now.”

Curtis compared Community’s progress to a roller coaster but hopes it is about to head into a steep incline starting with the Lady Trojans’ 2:45 p.m. game today against Harrisburg (2-5) in the Gary Filbert Classic in Mexico.

“We came up a little short, but I like the direction we’re heading,” Curtis said.

Trojans lose ground on Sturgeon in 55-36 loss

The Community R-6 appeared to make an early turnaround on Tuesday night at home.

The Trojans trailed Central Activities Conference foe 15-4 after the first quarter and then were down 25-15 in the second quarter but climbed back within single digits several times before losing ground in the fourth quarter in a 55-36 loss. Sturgeon outscored Community 18-7 in the fourth quarter to snap a three-game losing streak to the Trojans.

Head coach Kody Asquith said the explanation is simple why Community (2-6, 1-2 CAC) couldn’t catch up to Sturgeon (3-4, 2-0 CAC): turnovers. The Trojans finished with 22 turnovers and Sturgeon came away with 13 steals for some easy transition points. After Community went into the fourth quarter down 37-29, Sturgeon pretty soon after rattled off four straight buckets in transition off of turnovers.

“It was 22 more times that they had the ball,” Asquith said. “They set the pace for the game and sped us up.”

Sturgeon has a team that can thrive with a quicker pace, Asquith said. Isaac Bolles finished with 17 points and Connor Lawson and Ethan Benskin gave the Bulldogs two more double-digit scorers with 11 and 10 points, respectively. Paden Pollock and Josh Kelly each followed with eight points.

Asquith said the frequent disruption of Community passes is big reason Sturgeon pulled away late in the game to make the contest seem more lopsided than it was throughout.

“They’re quick, and they can move around pretty good,” Asquith said. “They’ve got good hands and were getting tips on balls and knocking them away. It was what led to them being up by almost 20 at the end of the game.”

Bolles was a concern going in for Community and proved why with his steady performance on Tuesday. He had two field goals in every quarter and scored a big chunk of his points by either making moves to the rim or finishing off a fastbreak.

“He can handle the ball well, he can shoot from the outside and he can drive,” Asquith said. “At points, we stopped him well, but at other points, he did what he did best and score the ball.”

Community did have a good quarter of defense in the second quarter when the Trojans won the period 18-14 and were backed by multiple players on the offensive end. Mason Carroll finished with another double-double of 11 points and 11 rebound, but the Trojans had four others score by halftime.

“We were moving the ball well and were able to hit those open shots, which led us to the end of the half,” Asquith said.

Four of the Trojans’ five 3-pointers were hit in the second quarter when freshman Brett Beamer and Mason Rohan each dropped a pair. Each of them had six points and so did Clayton Jennings, who scored by working in the post.

“I’m OK with them stepping up and taking some shots,” Asquith said. “If they’re open and they keep making them, just take them. When you find a way to score the ball and if it’s spreading it out a little bit, it’s fine.”