Glenbard South's Mizwicki credits coach's help for strong start
Glenbard South girls basketball coach Eric Daca can provide a detailed and lengthy scouting report on junior guard Allie Mizwicki.
Since Mizwicki was in sixth grade, Daca has coached the highly talented player for every season but her freshman campaign.
"I've coached Allie since she was in the feeder program in sixth grade, and she's always been someone I can depend on, a great shooter, a smart player and somebody I like to keep on the floor a lot," Daca said.
"She's rarely in foul trouble, always in the right spot, makes the right decisions. This is her first year where she hasn't had to play point guard. Shooting guard is her natural spot. Since sixth grade to now, she's someone really dependable and a great asset."
Mizwicki said she doesn't see any downside to her long-term coach-player relationship with Daca.
"I like it because we know each other, and that's good and I can talk to him about any questions that I have and I feel comfortable with him," Mizwicki said. "He knows me, so he knows what's best for me."
On Tuesday, Mizwicki buried a pair of 3-pointers to finish with a team-high 12 points in limited minutes to power Glenbard South to a 51-29 victory over Bartlett.
The Raiders (10-1, 6-1) led from the opening tip to cruise to a road victory, with Sofia Alcala and Brooklynn Moore each scoring 8 points.
Mizwicki, in her third year on the varsity, scored 5 points in the first quarter to spark the Raiders to a 21-0 lead after 8 minutes. Mizwicki said she's enjoying playing with her younger sister, freshman guard Jamie Mizwicki, who scored 6 points.
For the season, the elder Mizwicki is shooting 38 percent on 3-pointers and 71 percent from the free-throw line to go with averaging nearly 10 points and 4 rebounds per game.
"She's always supporting me, so I know if we support each other we can do good and we both help each other," Allie Mizwicki said. "It's been a fun season. I like all my teammates, and playing the games and practices are all fun."
The Hawks (3-11, 3-4) struggled coming out of the gates, but played hard in the final three quarters to cut the deficit to 32-19 at halftime following a 3-pointer by Amadea Montijo.
The junior point guard was all over the floor, driving to the basket and launching 3s to end with two 3-pointers and 8 points. Samantha Blanchard led the Hawks with 9 points, while sparking a late surge with a 3-pointer in the third quarter.
"We fought back and have been talking all year in practices that no matter how it starts that you can't roll over and you have to keep fighting," Bartlett coach Tanner Gardon said. "Amadea is a really good basketball player and has a chance to be special. She's starting to buy into the stuff we're doing. If she keeps working this hard, it's only up from here."