advertisement

Sycamore stuns Burlington Central

Sycamore coach Brett Goff knew his team would have to play a strong defensive game if the Spartans were to upset No. 2 Burlington Central Friday night.

Goff's girls basketball team gave him more than his wildest dreams.

Sycamore clamped down on the Rockets like no team has in the past three years and the Spartans pulled off the upset, 37-21, in the championship game of the Class 3A Sycamore regional.

"We are their Montini," said Burlington Central coach Mark Smith, referring to his team's upset earlier this season of then top-ranked Montini. "They haven't beaten us since I've been here. It's not how we wanted to finish but credit to Brett and the way they coached them.

Sycamore (26-2), which lost to Central in last year's sectional semifinals on the Rockets' trip to Redbird Arena and fourth place at the state tournament, will take on Rockford Lutheran at 7 p.m. Tuesday in the Hampshire sectional. The Rockets close the season 25-4.

"It was a team effort and it had to be," said Goff, who is assisted by former Burlington Central boys basketball coach and St. Edward graduate Chris Payne. "They're so explosive and any of them can go off on a given night. Our girls did an outstanding job. Twenty-one points? They're capable of that every quarter. It was just an outstanding defensive effort."

That it was, and it came on a night when the Rockets' shooting touch was off as well, something helped along by Sycamore's relentless defense. BC made just 8 of 30 field goal attempts (27 percent), including going 1-for-14 from 3-point range as the Rockets scored the fewest points a BC girls team has since a 53-22 loss to Batavia on Jan. 23, 2011.

"I just felt we were out of sorts all night," said Smith. "They made us play that way, I guess. They were hungry. We were hungry too but they really wanted it. We played hard and wanted it to. Sycamore met the challenge."

"They knew what they had to do. Give their coaches credit and give their girls credit. They played hard," said BC senior Alison Colby, who scored 4 points to finish her four-year varsity career with 993 career points. "They were getting in the passing lanes and they kept pushing us to the half-court line. We just couldn't get it inside."

Sycamore jumped out to a 10-2 lead before the packed house could get settled and the Spartans really never looked back. They led 15-6 after one quarter and 17-12 at halftime. Senior Aly DeTamble hit the Rockets' only 3-pointer of the night 16 seconds into the third quarter to make it 17-15 but the Spartans went on a 9-0 run to open up a 26-15 lead on a basket by junior Madi McGhee with 3:12 left in the period. McGhee led Sycamore with 12 points.

"McGhee killed us," Smith said. "Credit to her but she scored zero points in all the games we scouted."

Juniors Kayla Ross and Sam Pryor, who led the Rockets with 6 points apiece, each scored a basket and BC toughened up on defense to draw within 5, 26-21, after Ross' baseline drive with 4:47 to play in the game. But that would be the last points BC would score as Sycamore used an 11-0 run to close the game and win its second straight regional title. The Spartans went 7-for-7 from the free throw line in the fourth quarter while BC's shooting woes continued, going 2 of 10 from the field in the quarter.

The loss closed out the careers of BC seniors Colby, DeTamble, Kayla Rafferty and Jackie Collins.

"It's tough in there right now," said Smith of his team's locker room. "We've got four outstanding seniors who have meant so much to the program."

"Coming in as a freshman and starting on varsity I thought this is as good as it's going to get," said Colby. "But our team just kept blossoming. Even though this wasn't the outcome we wanted I hope we've made the Central alumni and community proud."

Images: Burlington Central vs. Sycamore, girls basketball

  Burlington Central's Aly DeTamble walks off the court after the Rockets' loss as Sycamore celebrates its win in the Class 3A Sycamore regional girls basketball championship game Friday. Brian Hill/bhill@dailyherald.com
  Burlington Central's Sam Pryor shoots over Sycamore's Madelyne Johnson during the Class 3A Sycamore regional girls basketball championship game Friday. Brian Hill/bhill@dailyherald.com
  Burlington Central's Kayla Ross scoots around Sycamore center Taiya Hopkins during the Class 3A Sycamore regional girls basketball championship game Friday. Brian Hill/bhill@dailyherald.com
  Burlington Central's Samantha Cruz pressures Sycamore guard Lauren Goff during the Class 3A Sycamore regional girls basketball championship game Friday. Brian Hill/bhill@dailyherald.com
Article Comments
Guidelines: Keep it civil and on topic; no profanity, vulgarity, slurs or personal attacks. People who harass others or joke about tragedies will be blocked. If a comment violates these standards or our terms of service, click the "flag" link in the lower-right corner of the comment box. To find our more, read our FAQ.