advertisement

Glenbard West gets 3-pointers to drop in bunches

There was a lot in Tuesday's West Suburban Silver girls basketball game for Glenbard West to like.

For starters the Hilltoppers - who won at Hinsdale Central 51-19 - enjoyed hitting 10 3-pointers among their 19 field goals. Not that they're always that reliant on the 3.

"No, we try not to be," Glenbard West coach Kristi Faulkner said with a laugh. "But they were playing that zone so we tried to get some reversals and take what was there and there were some open 3s. We try and get inside-out, but we got a lot of looks at the 3-point line."

The Hilltoppers (7-2, 3-0) were very effective from behind the arc, none of them more than sophomore guard Maggie Stutelberg.

Stutelberg set the tone for the Hilltoppers early, hitting three 3-pointers in the first quarter to lift Glenbard West to a 16-2 lead. She finished 5 of 6 on 3-pointers for a game-high 15 points.

"I think, especially the last couple of games, I've been focusing on taking the right shots and not just chucking it at the basket," Stutelberg said.

Her focus showed.

"I thought Maggie had really good shot selection," Faulkner added. "She took the shots that were there, and she even had a couple where she was open but she passed them up maybe for an even better shot for her teammate. But it was really good decision making as far as what shots to take and even penetrating in a little bit. Even if she didn't score, taking it all the way to the hole. She still drew the defense, kicked it. I think just a smart game."

The Hilltoppers could quantify how well they passed the ball, not just in the final score but also in assisting on 13 of their 19 baskets.

"That was totally what we focused on too was just that extra pass," said Stutelberg, who had 2 of those assists. "And that worked for us."

It brought a smile to her coach's face also.

"That's great," Faulkner said. "That's good to hear too. That's what, as a coach, you want, to be assisting on as many baskets as you can."

Senior Katie O'Shea added 9 points and 3 assists to the Hilltoppers' totals. Taylor Huff had 7 points and 2 assists, and Katelyn Heller had 6 points and 3 assists. Junior Emma Hall came of the bench to score 6 points on 2-of-3 3-point shooting also.

It's already been an impressive start to the season for Glenbard West, whose only two losses are to highly ranked Rolling Meadows and Fremd.

"We love our team, and we talk about every practice, every game, trying to build and that the whole season is such a process. With each day we work on things that no matter who we're playing, we try to focus on Glenbard West. What we can do to grow as a team, to grow as individuals so that with conference games and the end of the season, the state tournament, trying to do the best we can to make a run," Faulkner said.

Stutelberg agreed with her coach.

"I think we're playing really good," she said. "We have a small team, but we're using our team really efficiently and we're using each player really efficiently. And the bench is doing a really good job of just hyping each other up and keeping it positive."

Hinsdale Central fell to 1-6, 0-3 in the Silver.

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.