Hillsboro takes to road, makes clutch baskets in win over Fayetteville
Lead Summary
By
Stephen Forsha-sforsha@gmail.com
FAYETTEVILLE — In a game that saw neither team gain a double-digit lead, and the Hillsboro Lady Indians trail by as many as nine points in the third quarter, that wasn’t enough to completely stop the road team. In fact, the Lady Indians made some key plays in the second half with blocks and rebounds to keep the score close.
As the game went on at the home of the Fayetteville Lady Rockets Wednesday night, the Lady Indians sank clutch shots in the latter stages of the fourth quarter, including a big-time 3-pointer by Karleigh Hopkins and late free throws from Lana Grover to seal a 55-52 win. The victory was the first of the season for Hillsboro.
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“I was really pleased with our kids,” Hillsboro head coach JR Moberly said. “We did some things tonight that we haven’t really tried or practiced, but in order to try something different, it worked out. They made adjustments.
“We were down nine and they just dug, one scoop at a time, to get back into the basketball game and get ahead. I’m really proud of their effort. I told them we did a lot of bad things tonight, but we did enough right things to win a basketball game. Hopefully we can build on that.”
Even though Hillsboro’s second half was better than their first half — with HHS trailing 31-27 at halftime — the Lady Indians had a rough go to start the third frame, eventually trailing by nine points with 5:09 left in the quarter by a 38-29 score.
HHS (0-1, 1-1) called a timeout at the 5:07 mark and then promptly scored at the 4:44 mark, followed by two free throws from Kayden Watson at the 4:31 mark of the third at 38-33. Watson followed up with a timely block with 3:49 on the clock, and then Josie Hopkins with 3:10 on the clock grabbed the rebound and put the ball back into the hoop. Josie Hopkins finished with nine points, 15 rebounds (seven offensive), two steals and one block.
“Kayden Watson made a great block,” Moberly said. “It was huge. We ran back and we made them make an extra pass, and that gave Kayden enough time to come from behind and knock that ball out. That was a super-hustle play on her part.”
Hillsboro got to within a point of the lead following a put-back bucket by Gracie Dean and then took the lead for the first time since the first quarter when Lana Grover sank a 3-pointer with the assist from Dean at the 1:44 mark of the third for a 40-38 advantage in favor of the Lady Indians. Dean also added four rebounds, three assists and one steal.
The Lady Indians wrapped up the third with a bank shot off the glass by Josie Hopkins and a layup by Watson for a 44-38 lead at the end of the third. HHS finished the third by outscoring the Lady Rockets, 17-7 in the eight minutes.
Then came the fourth quarter where Fayetteville was strong again, eventually getting to within a point of the Lady Indians at the 5:42 mark of the fourth following a 3-pointer for a 46-45 score.
HHS kept the lead as the quarter continued, but that didn’t last as Fayetteville tied the game following points by Hannah Wiederhold and Olivia Crawford for a 50-50 tied score with 2:28 left in regulation.
Fayetteville regained the lead with 1:51 left on the scoreboard when Kelbee Coffman scored points in the paint to go ahead by a 52-50 score.
Then came possibly the most clutch shot of the game as Karleigh Hopkins swished a 3-pointer with 1:19 left in the game for a 53-52 lead. Karleigh Hopkins finished with eight points, four assists and one steal.
“That was a big shot,” Moberly said. “All night long, kids were throwing in threes and making big shots. When we can shoot the basketball like that, we’ve got a chance to play with anybody, I think. We’ve struggled to throw it in, and tonight we went through some stretches where we shot it really well. That just gives us the confidence to feed off of on the other end.”
Following a timeout by Fayetteville with 47 seconds left in the fourth, then came a hectic sequence of events of a Hillsboro turnover, a Hillsboro steal, a Fayetteville steal and a foul, all in a span of seven seconds. Fayetteville missed the ensuing free throw with 30.8 left on the clock, as Josie Hopkins grabbed the rebound on the missed free throw and was fouled.
Still ahead by a 53-52 score, Hillsboro regained possession of the ball and saw Grover go to the free-throw line and make two free throws to put HHS ahead by three points, with the final score being 55-52.
“We need [Grover] to get the ball in her hands, to get people where they need to be, to want the ball there at the end when it’s time to step to the line even though you’ve missed a couple in a row,” Moberly said. “Kelsey Burns is the same way. On the defensive end, she’s a leader for us. She made some big stops, got some big rebounds and takes care of the basketball on this end. I’m really pleased with the effort of those two seniors.”
Watson and Grover each led the Lady Indians with 17 points apiece. Watson added two steals, two rebounds and one block. Grover totaled four rebounds, one assist and one steal.
As for the first half, the Lady Indians trailed the Lady Rockets by a 16-13 score after the first quarter, and following being outscored by Fayetteville, 15-14 in the second frame, the Lady Indians trailed 31-27 at halftime.
Hillsboro saw Karleigh Hopkins sink a 3-pointer in the first frame, and later, following a layup by Grover, HHS led 5-4. Later, HHS tied the game at 8-8 with a 3-pointer by Josie Hopkins with 4:43 left in the first frame.
Six straight points by Olivia Crawford of Fayetteville gave them a 14-8 lead, and that lead went to 16-8 for the home team with a layup by Taylor Malone. HHS scored the final five points of the first frame with a jumper from Christine Page and a 3-pointer from Watson.
For Fayetteville, Malone had 16 points and 10 rebounds for a double-double. She also added two blocks and three steals. Coffman finished with 12 points and nine rebounds.
In the second quarter, the Lady Indians tied the score at 16 early on with a 3-pointer from Watson. Fayetteville eventually built a lead of nine points with 2:31 left in the first half, but a 3-pointer by Grover put HHS back to within six points at the 2:19 mark of the second.
With 1:25 left in the second Watson drained a 3-pointer and later in the quarter Grover made another 3-pointer to make it a two-point deficit for the Lady Indians. Fayetteville’s MaKenna Holden scored the final points of the first half with two free throws for the four-point halftime advantage.
Also for the game, Hillsboro’s Kelsey Burns totaled six rebounds, four assists and three steals.
As a team, Hillsboro totaled 46 rebounds, 26 turnovers and 11 steals. As a team, Fayetteville had 37 rebounds, 20 turnovers and 14 steals.
“We’re somewhere in the middle,” Moberly said of his team’s play so far this season. “Fayetteville’s a good basketball club, and they always play well here. They do things a little bit different, and Coach Sheets, he’s the master. He’s been doing it for years. He’s got them, especially early on, doing one pass, one dribble, one shoot. They do a lot of good things, but we were able to adjust and take those away tonight.”
In the JV game, Fayetteville defeated Hillsboro, 21-17.
Next for Hillsboro is an away non-conference game on Monday, Dec. 3 at Batavia.
As the game went on at the home of the Fayetteville Lady Rockets Wednesday night, the Lady Indians sank clutch shots in the latter stages of the fourth quarter, including a big-time 3-pointer by Karleigh Hopkins and late free throws from Lana Grover to seal a 55-52 win. The victory was the first of the season for Hillsboro.
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“I was really pleased with our kids,” Hillsboro head coach JR Moberly said. “We did some things tonight that we haven’t really tried or practiced, but in order to try something different, it worked out. They made adjustments.
“We were down nine and they just dug, one scoop at a time, to get back into the basketball game and get ahead. I’m really proud of their effort. I told them we did a lot of bad things tonight, but we did enough right things to win a basketball game. Hopefully we can build on that.”
Even though Hillsboro’s second half was better than their first half — with HHS trailing 31-27 at halftime — the Lady Indians had a rough go to start the third frame, eventually trailing by nine points with 5:09 left in the quarter by a 38-29 score.
HHS (0-1, 1-1) called a timeout at the 5:07 mark and then promptly scored at the 4:44 mark, followed by two free throws from Kayden Watson at the 4:31 mark of the third at 38-33. Watson followed up with a timely block with 3:49 on the clock, and then Josie Hopkins with 3:10 on the clock grabbed the rebound and put the ball back into the hoop. Josie Hopkins finished with nine points, 15 rebounds (seven offensive), two steals and one block.
“Kayden Watson made a great block,” Moberly said. “It was huge. We ran back and we made them make an extra pass, and that gave Kayden enough time to come from behind and knock that ball out. That was a super-hustle play on her part.”
Hillsboro got to within a point of the lead following a put-back bucket by Gracie Dean and then took the lead for the first time since the first quarter when Lana Grover sank a 3-pointer with the assist from Dean at the 1:44 mark of the third for a 40-38 advantage in favor of the Lady Indians. Dean also added four rebounds, three assists and one steal.
The Lady Indians wrapped up the third with a bank shot off the glass by Josie Hopkins and a layup by Watson for a 44-38 lead at the end of the third. HHS finished the third by outscoring the Lady Rockets, 17-7 in the eight minutes.
Then came the fourth quarter where Fayetteville was strong again, eventually getting to within a point of the Lady Indians at the 5:42 mark of the fourth following a 3-pointer for a 46-45 score.
HHS kept the lead as the quarter continued, but that didn’t last as Fayetteville tied the game following points by Hannah Wiederhold and Olivia Crawford for a 50-50 tied score with 2:28 left in regulation.
Fayetteville regained the lead with 1:51 left on the scoreboard when Kelbee Coffman scored points in the paint to go ahead by a 52-50 score.
Then came possibly the most clutch shot of the game as Karleigh Hopkins swished a 3-pointer with 1:19 left in the game for a 53-52 lead. Karleigh Hopkins finished with eight points, four assists and one steal.
“That was a big shot,” Moberly said. “All night long, kids were throwing in threes and making big shots. When we can shoot the basketball like that, we’ve got a chance to play with anybody, I think. We’ve struggled to throw it in, and tonight we went through some stretches where we shot it really well. That just gives us the confidence to feed off of on the other end.”
Following a timeout by Fayetteville with 47 seconds left in the fourth, then came a hectic sequence of events of a Hillsboro turnover, a Hillsboro steal, a Fayetteville steal and a foul, all in a span of seven seconds. Fayetteville missed the ensuing free throw with 30.8 left on the clock, as Josie Hopkins grabbed the rebound on the missed free throw and was fouled.
Still ahead by a 53-52 score, Hillsboro regained possession of the ball and saw Grover go to the free-throw line and make two free throws to put HHS ahead by three points, with the final score being 55-52.
“We need [Grover] to get the ball in her hands, to get people where they need to be, to want the ball there at the end when it’s time to step to the line even though you’ve missed a couple in a row,” Moberly said. “Kelsey Burns is the same way. On the defensive end, she’s a leader for us. She made some big stops, got some big rebounds and takes care of the basketball on this end. I’m really pleased with the effort of those two seniors.”
Watson and Grover each led the Lady Indians with 17 points apiece. Watson added two steals, two rebounds and one block. Grover totaled four rebounds, one assist and one steal.
As for the first half, the Lady Indians trailed the Lady Rockets by a 16-13 score after the first quarter, and following being outscored by Fayetteville, 15-14 in the second frame, the Lady Indians trailed 31-27 at halftime.
Hillsboro saw Karleigh Hopkins sink a 3-pointer in the first frame, and later, following a layup by Grover, HHS led 5-4. Later, HHS tied the game at 8-8 with a 3-pointer by Josie Hopkins with 4:43 left in the first frame.
Six straight points by Olivia Crawford of Fayetteville gave them a 14-8 lead, and that lead went to 16-8 for the home team with a layup by Taylor Malone. HHS scored the final five points of the first frame with a jumper from Christine Page and a 3-pointer from Watson.
For Fayetteville, Malone had 16 points and 10 rebounds for a double-double. She also added two blocks and three steals. Coffman finished with 12 points and nine rebounds.
In the second quarter, the Lady Indians tied the score at 16 early on with a 3-pointer from Watson. Fayetteville eventually built a lead of nine points with 2:31 left in the first half, but a 3-pointer by Grover put HHS back to within six points at the 2:19 mark of the second.
With 1:25 left in the second Watson drained a 3-pointer and later in the quarter Grover made another 3-pointer to make it a two-point deficit for the Lady Indians. Fayetteville’s MaKenna Holden scored the final points of the first half with two free throws for the four-point halftime advantage.
Also for the game, Hillsboro’s Kelsey Burns totaled six rebounds, four assists and three steals.
As a team, Hillsboro totaled 46 rebounds, 26 turnovers and 11 steals. As a team, Fayetteville had 37 rebounds, 20 turnovers and 14 steals.
“We’re somewhere in the middle,” Moberly said of his team’s play so far this season. “Fayetteville’s a good basketball club, and they always play well here. They do things a little bit different, and Coach Sheets, he’s the master. He’s been doing it for years. He’s got them, especially early on, doing one pass, one dribble, one shoot. They do a lot of good things, but we were able to adjust and take those away tonight.”
In the JV game, Fayetteville defeated Hillsboro, 21-17.
Next for Hillsboro is an away non-conference game on Monday, Dec. 3 at Batavia.