New Bloomfield girls basketball's offensive onslaught saw five players score at least five points (including two players in double figures), while South Callaway only had one player do so -- Maddie Radmacher with six points.
No. 5 seed New Bloomfield beat No. 8 seed South Callaway 47-17 in the consolation bracket of the 39th Annual Sturgeon Tournament Wednesday night at Sturgeon Middle School. The Lady Wildcats (4-14) won their first game since they beat South Callaway on Jan. 13, while the Lady Bulldogs stay winless on the season (0-15).
New Bloomfield's offense eventually took control of the game, but the Lady Wildcats struggled to get points on the board early. New Bloomfield only scored on five of its 13 possessions in the first quarter, but luckily for them, South Callaway also struggled offensively.
Both teams did well protecting the line in that period, but there were also quite a few missed shots. However, the Lady Wildcats scored on their first possession when Brooklynn Smith made a layup off an Avery Nichols assist.
The Lady Bulldogs answered two possessions later, as Regan Arrowood drained a top-of-the-arc 3 from a pass. Arrowood's 3-pointer was enough to lead South Callaway offensively in the first half.
Brinley Dysart responded on New Bloomfield's ensuing possession, scoring a layup, which put the Lady Wildcats up 4-3.
The Lady Wildcats went on a short dry spell offensively, while the Lady Bulldogs were consistently getting rebounds and steals on the defensive end. Lacey Matthews led South Callaway's defensive effort in the first quarter, recording three boards and a steal.
"We had a pretty good idea what they were going to do offensively," South Callaway coach Daniel Burns said. "So we were able to do switch screens, and we switch screens, and we did a pretty good job early.
"But honestly, our communication was too poor, and then that's kind of how they were able to get some easy shots early. And then it just kind of snowballed and miscommunication defensively. We didn't communicate well enough tonight. Didn't rebound well enough."
After McKenzie Laughlin's made free throw attempt tied the contest at 4-4, New Bloomfield got out of its offensive woes a couple of minutes later, and the Lady Bulldogs' offense continued to struggle.
Nichols -- who scored a game-high 16 points -- stole the ball and scored a layup in transition to give New Bloomfield a 6-4 lead. The Lady Wildcats led for the rest of the game.
"We've been struggling the last couple (of) ballgames, just putting the ball in the basket," New Bloomfield coach Brett Craighead said. "I thought once we started hitting some shots, that just kind of relaxed everybody. And they weren't rushing their shots, and they were taking them. It was good to see us finally hit some shots."
Nichols notched five of the Lady Wildcats' 11 points in the first quarter, with all her scoring happening in the final few minutes.
New Bloomfield picked it up offensively in the second quarter, registering 17 points. Macie Abbott guided the team that quarter, scoring eight points.
Not known for making shots from deep, Abbott hit a right corner 3 from Dysart's assist and had a three-point play in the second quarter.
"She's made a couple (3s) here lately," Craighead said. "That's an option. We really don't have a post-player per se. We're kind of positionless, so we worked on it. I told her, 'If they're gonna leave you open, let's see if you can knock them down.'"
On the half's final possession, Abbott made two free throws, extending the Lady Wildcats' advantage to 19 at halftime, 27-8.
Following the break, New Bloomfield scored as a team, with all but one of its starters scoring in the third quarter. The collective effort allowed the Lady Wildcats to put the game out of reach.
Abbott did that for New Bloomfield, tallying four points on the Lady Wildcats' final two possessions of the third quarter. After Abbott made a jumper on New Bloomfield's final scoring play of the quarter, the Lady Wildcats had a 30-point lead, 40-10.
With the result all but secured, New Bloomfield slowed down, as the Lady Wildcats and Lady Bulldogs each scored seven points in the fourth quarter. And it may have been too late, but South Callaway scored on 3-of-8 possessions in the fourth on a night it struggled to get its offense going.
"We took care of the ball a little bit better," Burns said. "They did some different things defensively to kind of take away Reagan. So we needed some other girls to step in and take some shots, which they did. A lot of them just didn't fall tonight. I just didn't feel like we played with very much energy, which was upsetting because, traditionally, past week, we've played really hard. I don't know what it was; we just didn't play the good enough energy tonight to beat them."
New Bloomfield showed improvement against the Lady Bulldogs this time, as they won by 19 more points than the first meeting between the teams this season -- which took place at South Callaway.
"I thought we played them better than we did last time we played them," Craighead said. "But we were just a little more patient, and we're calmer, and we're more relaxed. But I mean, we've gotten better. And obviously, you just need to continue to get better. And when we hit shots, it just helps us."
Staying alive, No. 5 seed New Bloomfield will face No. 7 seed Paris (5-12) in the seventh-place game at 11 a.m. Saturday at Sturgeon High School. If the Lady Wildcats win the game, they would match their fifth-place finish in the Sturgeon Tournament last season.
"They're a good team," Craighead said. "I thought they came out, and they really played hard. It's gonna be a tough matchup for us because they're gonna be hungry for a win. We're gonna be hungry for a win, so it's gonna be a good game."
Meanwhile, South Callaway (0-14, 0-1) will have a chance to regroup when they take on New Bloomfield (4-14, 0-2) again, this time in a Show-Me Conference game at 6 p.m. Monday in Mokane. It'll be the Lady Bulldogs' Senior Night.
"We just got to generate some offense," Burns said. "Generate some offense, play more cleanly, communicate better. We got to do the little things better; that's what we're struggling with right now. We're young, and we're inexperienced, but we've gotta clean through some stuff."