Mexico girls feed off energy, Hudson first half to defeat Marshall 50-37

A slow start didn’t stop the Mexico girls on Tuesday night or Claire Hudson this season.

Mexico boys, girls vs Marshall Photo Gallery

Hudson led the Lady Bulldogs with 26 points, nine rebounds, seven steals and four 3-pointers to a 50-37 victory against Marshall at home in their North Central Missouri Conference opener. Mexico finished with 18 steals and held the Lady Owls to single digits in each of the final three quarters despite trailing 15-13 after the first quarter.

Head coach Makenzie Mudd said she wanted the Lady Bulldogs (2-4, 1-0 NCMC) to take advantage of the loud and energetic crowd that was there for each of the girls’ and boys’ conference openers. The Lady Owls (0-5, 0-1 NCMC) had the rebounding advantage of 16-4 after the first quarter and still pulled down a fair share of them in the rest of the game but only after Mexico took a quick shot in transition off a forced turnover.

"Our plan from the beginning was to get up, get aggressive and force turnovers early," Mudd said. "We were just a little slow in kicking up our energy. We then had a few forced turnovers and a few layups and that really sparked it. We're a team that once we get excited, we really feed off of each other and can keep doing things."

After a 13-1 run in the second quarter, Mexico had its first double-digit lead at 28-18 before a 20-7 second quarter opened up a 33-22 halftime lead. Marshall was hardly able to run a possession thanks to Mexico’s full-court pressure and attentive defense.

Hudson is counted on to advance the ball down the floor and was able to touch the ball frequently as the Lady Bulldogs ran down the floor and then when she put the ball in the net. At the intermission, Hudson had 21 points and knocked down three 3-pointers for her best game of the season so far. 

“She’s definitely one that feeds off the rest of the team too,” Mudd said. “She’s a floor leader and she’s a leader all-around on the team so whenever everybody else is doing well, she is more comfortable taking those shots. When we’re struggling, she’s not taking as many shots because she’s worried about a turnover possibly happening.”

Hudson said it took a little more time this season to be in the flow after some special circumstances. She said she was hospitalized in August because of brain seizures, leaving her and doctors perplexed of what was going on. Eventually, Hudson had her tonsils removed to fix the problem, which caused her to miss practices at the start of the winter season but helped her return to the court.

“Two months ago, I didn’t know if I would be able to step on the court because of health reasons,” Hudson said. “I just tried to be patient with the process and keep shooting the ball. Finally tonight, my shots were going in so that was a big confidence booster for me and then attacking the man defense is always one of my go-tos so I got my teammates involved and everybody was up.”

Hudson said the offense has been down this season so finding those easy transition points is important for the Lady Bulldogs but also feels like they are good when in that mode because of their ability to push the ball down the floor. She and Jo Thurman — who finished with 10 points, seven assists and three steals — took turns setting each other up for shots.

“We have the most playing time together so we know how each other plays,” Hudson said. “We can talk (on the court), ‘You do this and I’ll do this.’”

It was advantageous that Mexico kept finding the bottom of the net because that helped its defense, Mudd said, and kept the crowd excited.

“They have a lot of youth and are long but aren’t as quick with their passes,” Mudd said. “Our plan was to get up their high, and after a made basket, we got into a press to try to keep that energy going from a make into a forced turnover and continuing it on quarter to quarter.”

Bulldogs' lead grows after first quarter in 70-40 win vs Marshall

The excitement at Gary Filbert Court in the Mexico Sports Complex kept growing on Tuesday night.

Hopes were high before the Mexico boys’ North Central Missouri Conference and home opener against Marshall and were through the roof after a 70-40 victory. The Bulldogs had nine players score and hit seven 3-pointers, rolling after leading 18-13 after the first quarter.

Head coach Darren Pappas said Mexico (5-0, 1-0 NCMC) was in the flow of the game when it outscored the Owls 16-7 in the second quarter, not merely settling for shots and moving the basketball around. That began with smothering defense as Marshall (0-3, 0-1 NCMC) struggled to find many open shots in the lane or on the perimeter.

"We were just trying to hold them to one shot and out and making the guards take tough shots," Pappas said. "You don't want them standing around the perimeter and have open looks. We did a good job of running them off the 3-point line and making them take tough shots right outside the paint."

Marshall’s center Brody Kueker was a concern heading into the game as he finished with 12 points behind the Owls’ scoring leader Chase Thompson with 13 points. Pappas said he thought the Bulldogs did well to keep him and Marshall off the glass so Mexico could run in transition when the Owls’ defense was still forming.

PJ Perkins was a big factor for the Bulldogs on the boards as Pappas said he was “an animal” again, finishing 12 rebounds to follow a double-digit rebounding performance in last Saturday’s Montgomery County tournament championship game victory. Perkins finished with six points, but Pappas said Perkins does so much for the team even when his scoring is low and hopes the team’s second and third rebounders eventually show his drive for rebounding.

“I know he’s a little disappointed with his offensive production, but I can’t say enough about the kid’s defense and rebounding ability,” Pappas said. “That’s what a team player does. They stick to their role, they do their role well and he definitely is doing that.”

Mexico had plenty of offense to go around, though, starting with senior point guard DJ Long’s game-high 20 points and three steals, and Jaydon Eldridge followed with 13 points, combining with Long for 15 points in the first quarter as they flashed good mid-range shooting. Long followed a standout Montgomery performance as well when he had 29 points so Marshall had to pay special attention to him in the lane.

Pappas said that left plenty of opportunities for others as Mexico’s bench scored 21 points. Eventually, the student section pleaded with Pappas to put in Wellsville-Middletown transfer and cross country state qualifier Hunter Bickell and he obliged. Bickell hit a mid-range shot to raise the crowd to a new decibel level.

“We need that depth and need that production from our bench,” Pappas said. “You never know what’s going to be down the road in the season — people getting in foul trouble and people getting injured.”

Charlie Fisher accounted for 13 of those points and hit three 3-pointers. Pappas said he had his own suggestions when it came to Fisher in the first half as he thought the sophomore could be more aggressive on offense. Fisher scored 10 points in the second half.

“The first time I pulled him out, I said ‘Hey, you’re being too passive,’” Pappas said. “At times, he was dribbling down to the short corner, but he wasn’t looking to score but pass instead. Attack the rim, kick out if you have to, but attack the rim.”

Fisher said he hopes the Bulldogs can keep momentum going after earning two signature wins in their first conference and home victories. He said the momentum flowed from the second quarter on because of Mexico playing better as a team and is thankful that his teammates found him open looks and boosted his confidence.

“Once I make my first one, I feel like I’m getting into a rhythm,” Fisher said. “Then, I get pretty confident in my shot.”

Kaden Benne had two 3-pointers for seven points, Holden Aulbur picked up four points and two rebounds off the bench, and Aidan Knipfel didn’t score but pulled down five rebounds as a reserve. Fisher likes having this many contribute meaningful minutes.

“It helps us work harder because we know that we have subs if we need them,” Fisher said. “We have a lot of depth this year and think we can use it to our advantage and play harder than all of the other teams.”