Huskies exterminate Hornets, 47-16
The varsity girls basketball team defeated North Kansas City High School’s JV, 47-16, Friday Jan. 19 in the loser’s bracket of the 2018 Border Classic. Senior forward Evan Bail had 7 points to lead all Huskies in scoring.
January 19, 2018
PITTSBURG, Kan. — It did not take long for the Blue Valley Northwest Huskies to take control of their Border Classic matchup with North Kansas City High School’s JV squad Friday afternoon. With just over three minutes remaining in the first quarter, junior guard Haley Shin knocked down a 3-pointer from the top of the arc. Shin’s long-range shot extended the Huskies lead to 12-0, a lead that they would never come close to surrendering, as they would go on to defeat the Hornets, 47-16.
In a game in which every Husky who touched the court scored, it was a dominating win against an inferior opponent, something senior guard Kate Kaufman said the team knew heading into it.
“It was good because I think we knew what we needed to do,” Kaufman said. “Execute, and make sure that we play like we can.”
The Huskies did play like they knew they can as head coach Brian Bubalo said the execution and focus allowed for him to experiment with some new lineups and schemes.
“I mean, we knew going in it was a lesser opponent,” Bubalo said. “I was happy with their attitude. They worked hard, they didn’t take… shots they wouldn’t normally take because they are playing a weaker opponent. But, that was not the case. They played as a team and they took good shots.”
Despite a short, stagnant period of offense in the end of the first quarter, and beginning of the second quarter, Kaufman was able to jumpstart another Huskies run to end the half with a 23-7 lead, with a few steals and assists.
“I thought Kate Kaufman made some nice plays on the press,” Bubalo said. “When they would break the press, she would come down the court and intercept some passes.”
Along with Kaufman, sophomore guard Veronica Spillman put her stamp on the game with her defensive presence on the Huskies press, along with her heady plays with the offensive ball movement. For Spillman to come off the bench and do some of the dirty work, Kaufman said it is good to see her effort level at all times.
“She always works really hard which is really nice to have that kind of energy on the team,” Kaufman said, “and she works really hard in practice so that shows when she plays.”
Spillman, who scored five points, and added two rebounds and two assists, said she was glad she could contribute to a solid team win.
“It was just so much fun to play in and I think that we all worked really well as a team together,” Spillman said. “I think everyone was passing and making the extra pass to find the best shot and not just take first shot and I think we had a lot of energy coming out which definitely helped.”
With the win, Blue Valley Northwest improves their record to 4-7 on the season. The Huskies will play in the fifth place game of the 2018 Border Classic against Pittsburg Saturday Jan. 20 at 1:30 p.m. at Pittsburg High School.
