The mood heading into halftime at the Girls Basketball game versus Niles North Saturday night was somber at best; the Wolves (8-0) were down to the Vikings (2-5) 17-26 in the “Crosstown Classic.”
Despite early foul trouble, North was up 9-12 at the end of the first quarter, with West having defensive issues. However, most would say that the reason for the early deficit was due to senior Jewell Loyd’s slow start, who had 13 points at the half.
“The entire team, including Jewell, was challenged the first half. We were having all sorts of match-up problems, especially with our size,” said head coach Tony Konsewicz.
Still, at the beginning of the second half, the new-look Wolves came out with a swagger that held for the remainder of the game. After coming out and scoring nine points, in addition to making two “not-in-my-house!” blocks, West’s side of the gym finally started to liven up. Before the Vikings knew what hit them, Loyd had single-handily tied the game.
By the end of the third quarter, the Wolves had gone on a 17-4 run, and Loyd had doubled her first half points. The score was tied 30-30.
West’s Success continued into the second half, as Loyd matched her third quarter points (13), with the team continuing to command defensively. In the second half, North was held to 12 points, while West scored 22. Eventually, West won 49-38.
“Jewell willed the team to this victory. During halftime, she basically demanded the team that they weren’t gonna lose, and we really responded. She recognized she needed to pick up her game, and she certainly did. Also, our changes to our defense enabled us the team as a whole to dominate on that front,” said Konsewicz on the team’s second half adjustments.
Nonetheless, the Viking’s inability to put the ball in the hoop wasn’t their only problem. Just like the first half, they were marred by fouls (10), turnovers, and overall sloppy play.
As for their play, Konsewicz was immensely proud of his team, saying, “We definitely played our toughest game so-far. They played so hard in the face of this new adversity, they really deserved the win today.”
