Geneva defeats York in early game
The cream rose to the top Wednesday morning.
After missing 7 of her first 8 shots, Geneva junior Lindsay Blackmore erupted to score 19 of her game-high 25 points in the second half as the Vikings rallied to beat York 47-38 in the opening game of the Montini Christmas Tournament.
Blackmore wasn't alone in struggling early in the 8 a.m. game. The Vikings (9-2) made just 4 of 31 shots in the first half and felt fortunate to be down only 19-16 at the break.
"That's the worst we've shot all season, so we just talked about it at halftime that it's only going to get better," Geneva girls basketball coach Sarah Meadows said. "It can't get worse than that, so just stick with it."
The Vikings did just that. Katie Montgomery opened the second half by draining a 3-pointer and Blackmore followed with a trio of 3s to give her team the lead.
Blackmore had 11 points in the third quarter and that production proved crucial because the Dukes (10-5) still managed to cling to a 33-32 lead heading into the fourth quarter.
"I don't think it was really set up (for her to score)," Blackmore said. "It just kind of happened that way.
"I was open so I was shooting. I was making it, so I just kept shooting them."
Blackmore, who also had a game-high 11 rebounds to go with 2 steals, took the game over with a little help from sophomore guard Katie Palmer, who added 12 points, 4 rebounds, 3 steals and 2 assists.
The key sequence came midway through the fourth quarter, when Blackmore made a steal and went coast-to-coast for a layup to give the Vikings a 38-34 lead. On York's ensuing possession she blocked a shot, got the rebound and triggered a fast break which ended with Palmer swishing a 3.
"Lindsay got that breakaway steal," Meadows said. "I think that helped a ton.
"Katie hit a big shot in the corner and it's all about momentum. We talked about that at halftime. "Once we hit a couple shots and we get some momentum, I feel like everything gets a little easier."
Conversely, things got a little harder for York, which pulled within 41-36 on a drive by Sara Krissinger with 2:31 remaining. Geneva answered by scoring the next 6 points as Blackmore converted on a tough driving on the left baseline, then converted both ends of a 1-and-1, as did Palmer in the final minute.
"I think our intensity (was key) and we got momentum," Blackmore said. "That definitely helped us (and so did) taking care of the ball."
After playing great defense for three quarters, the Dukes grew weary in the fourth quarter and got outscored 15-5. Krissinger scored 10 of her team-high 12 point after halftime but her teammates combined for only 7 points in the second half.
"Our inexperience showed up in that last quarter," said York coach Brandon Collings, whose team went 0 for 10 on 3-point attempts. "We made way too many turnovers and defensively we started getting tired at the end.
"We didn't do well defending the ball screens, they started getting in the lane, kicking out to the shooters and they knocked down the shots."