Michigan City closes season on Lady Bulldogs with 44-32 Sectional Quarterfinal win; Morton edges Lowell 48-44

CHESTERTON (2-10-2009) When you get your state playoff draw, you formulate a plan for defeating the team you are set to meet.  Then, you fall behind 10-1 in the first quarter and it all goes out the window.

That's what happened to Crown Point's Lady Bulldogs and the season is over after a late rally fell short and Duneland Athletic Conference (DAC) champion Michigan City won 44-33 in a Class 4A Chesterton Sectional quarterfinal last week.

CP (12-9), an offensively challenged team for much of this decade, never recovered from a first half when no starting player scored a field goal.  CP was lucky to be trailing just 24-9 at the break to the under-performing Wolves (19-4), the three-time league champs.

CP brought a good-sized traveling crowd to its feet in the second half with a rally that closed them within 33-28 with 6:35 to play.  But the Lady Bulldogs were 11 of 48 (22.9%) from the floor and 11 of 20 from the line (55%) and you really shouldn't win with shooting like that.

"You can't fall that far behind," said CP coach Scott Reid, who watched his team double its 2008 victory total, but still bow out in the sectional quarterfinals.  "We never gave up.  We didn't quit.  We haven't all year."

Trailing 33-17 with 3:01 left in the third quarter, CP outscored Michigan City 11-0 and had the ball with a chance to get closer.

"We had a good look inside, too, " Reid recalled.  "Against a really good team, you can't get that far behind.  You have to work so hard to come back that you run out of gas.  It's always four quarters.  It's never one or two plays."

Crown Point, on offense, was not good at all for 2-1/2 quarters.  Michigan City, the obviously quicker and more confident team, trapped leading scorer Daniela Tarailo and held her scoreless in the first half.  Tarailo was 0-for-5 from the floor at the half and the Lady Bulldogs were 3-for-20.  CP had nine first half turnovers.  As in the last meeting, a 60-54 loss on Jan. 23, it took the Bulldogs half the game to adjust to the MC speed.

Obviously, the Lady Bulldogs were not favored against a team (MC is 62-9 over the last three seasons) they have not beaten now since 2005.  But Class 4A Sectional 2 is made up of seven DAC teams and Hobart (14-6).  Other than LaPorte (1-20), everyone in Sectional 2 had a .500 record or better.

"At this sectional, you better be happy with the draw," Reid continued.  "They're a good team obviously, but here, who are you going to draw that's going to be easy?  If you've got to play Michigan City, you're better off playing them in the first round than at the end of the week.  They played really well, especially defensively, but we did too.  That (Michigan City) is a team that scores a lot of points."

The turning point in the CP rally was when Nixon was charged with her fourth foul against Tarailo with 6:35 to go.  Wolves coach Terrance Allen chose not to remove the league MVP from the game, a high risk decision.  But the MC coach said he had his reasons.

"I didn't want her on the bench fussin' at me," he said.  "She does not want to come out.  When she gets into foul trouble, she wants to stay and play.  When she's gotten into trouble, and we've left her out there, she hasn't fouled out.  She understands what she needs to do and she's very smart on the floor."

Nixon, the 5-foot-10 guard who has started for the Wolves for four years, did not foul out and it was her ball handling that keyed a solid 'delay' offense for the winners.  McGee scored to make it 35-28 and the Wolves effectively took time off the clock after that.

Michigan City played without 6-foot-1 forward Jocelyn Edwards, but CP seemed nervous in the early going and could not hit a shot in the first quarter.  CP did not score a field goal until freshman Courtney Kvachkoff came off the bench to score in the second minute of the second quarter.  The Wolves, as they did in most of two previous meetings, struggled against the CP defense and they actually could have been much further ahead at the half than they were.

"She could have played," said MC coach Terrance Allen.  "But I thought we could win tonight without her and we could win Friday (the semifinals) without  her.  I wanted her to be 100% for Saturday.  And my thought is that every player we start is capable of scoring in double figures."

Sophomore forward Angelique Moore scored a season-best 19 points in 32 minutes for MC.  And CP, with only Kvachkoff and Tarailo scoring, just couldn't score enough points.

The Lady Bulldogs have won 17 sectional titles, but none since 2001.  To be fair, it's harder for 4A teams in eight team sectionals to win than it is for 2A teams in five and six team sectionals, but CP hasn't even been in the sectional title game since 2005.  No one is going to dominate Sectional 2 under the present format, but the senior class is understandably disappointed that they didn't get back to that sectional title game.

"I told them that I'll miss them," said Reid of his five seniors.  "They were my first graduating class (the 2008 team had only one senior: Nikki Brown) and they have represented Crown Point high school in a first class way from beginning to end.  In the end, that's what really matters.  It's always going to tough in this sectional, but that's the way basketball should be."
   
SECTIONAL NOTES:  Crown Point's girls varsity program is headed into an interesting period because, barring a transfer, they will have no senior varsity basketball players next season for the first time in at least two decades.  Three sophomores, forwards Zarah Cecich and Madeline Moore plus guards Alle Geisen saw extensive varsity time this year.  Freshman center Alexis Joseph and guard Courtney Kvachkoff are almost certain to move up to the varsity permanently next fall and sophs Kelly Gross, Victoria Connelly and Kelsey Batz will be needed to help replace the five seniors who will gradate in June.

Kvachkoff, a 5-foot-7 guard and the leading scorer on CP junior varsity coach Allison Isailovich's JV team, will be asked to replace a lot of the scoring that Daniela Tarailo (17 ppg.) produced this season.  Joseph and Moore are key players because CP will have to be a big team by 2010.

Michigan City returns three players who are 6-foot or taller.  Lake Central returns 6-foot-6 Andrea Kras and Valparaiso will have 6-foot-4 Stefanie Lang on the floor next season.  Reid said he expected to return as coach in 2010 and if others do not expect him to, they are not saying that.  Reid was the long time assistant coach for 27-year coach Tom May, who retired after the 2007 season.

The proposed IHSAA format change (it will be discussed this spring) that would reduce the four class playoff system to three classes would be a boost to teams like Crown Point and Merrillville, who play in the eight team Sectional 2 while Class 2A and 3A schools play in five or six team sectionals.

Hanover Central, playing in the five-team Class 2A River Forest Sectional, drew a quarterfinal bye and Lake Station (0-20) in the semifinals.  Hanover won the sectional Saturday night.

"Do I like being in an eight team sectional while other schools are in five team sectionals?" said Reid last week.  "No. But that's something that's out of our control."

The three class format, which is gaining favor, would create four or five team sectionals all over the state and bring back the four-team (there are now two teams at the) semi state.  In a four-team sectional, CP could still face Valparaiso or Merrillville but they would have to drive to Chesterton or Michigan City to play them.

A switch to three classes in baseball, softball, volleyball and basketball, probably isn't possible until the 2010-2011 school year.

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Revised: February 16, 2009 .