by Alan Hoskins, KCKCC
Kansas City Kansas Community College quickly rebounded from its second women’s loss of the season Saturday by blowing away host Marshalltown (Iowa) Community College 90-59 in the second round of the Emerson Classic.
The win came just 28 hours after Des Moines Area Community College (DMACC) had ended the Lady Blue Devils’ 5-game winning streak with a come-from-behind 68-64 win and left KCKCC 6-2 heading into a road game at Penn Valley a week from Tuesday, Nov. 29.
Led by Millie Shade, three Blue Devils combined for 66 points in the 90-59 win over Marshalltown. A 5-11 redshirt sophomore from Lawrence Free State, Shade had a spectacular shooting night, hitting 8-of-10 shots from the field including a sizzling 5-of-6 from 3-point range for a career high 25 points. Brooklyn Wagler had a double double with 19 points and 10 rebounds while Brie Tauai just missed, scoring 22 points and grabbing nine rebounds.
“Anytime you get a chance to win immediately after suffering a defeat, you better take advantage of it and we were fortunate to play another game 28 hours after a loss,” KCKCC coach Joe McKinstry said. “Our execution and ball movement was great and it reflected in our shooting performance (49.3 percent overall and 45.8 percent from 3-point). We did have 20 turnovers which was a little discouraging but it was 13 less than Friday so it was better.”
The Blue Devils grabbed command from the start, using a 17-0 run to open a 26-9 first quarter lead. Shade had 11 points including three treys and Tauai 8 points as the Blue Devils shot 64.7 percent in the first period. Kayla Horn directed the offense with eight assists while Wagler added five and Valencia Scott three assists and eight points. KCKCC also dominated the rebounding 43-27 with 17 coming off the offensive boards and turned 26 Marshalltown turnovers into 36 points.
However, KCKCC could not overcome 33 turnovers against DMACC, a team that the Blue Devils had beaten 71-58 at home Nov. 4. Eleven of the turnovers came in the fourth quarter along with just 28.4 percent shooting as DMACC erased a 9-point deficit in the final eight minutes.
The Blue Devils still led 62-59 with less than three minutes remaining but missed their final seven shots and turned the ball over three times in the final four minutes. Meanwhile, DMACC went ahead on two free throws with 2:00 left and stayed in front by making seven straight from the foul line and 23-of-27 for the game (.852).
KCKCC got a standout rebounding effort from Tauai as the two teams battled to a 47-47 draw on the boards. A 5-11 sophomore from Blue Springs, Tauai had 18 rebounds, half of which were offensive, and scored 14 points before fouling out late. Shade added 13 points and 6 rebounds; Kayla Horn 11 points and 7 steals; Aerial Holiday 10 points; and Brooklyn Wagler 8 points and 7 rebounds.
“We let this one slip away,” McKinstry said. “Our effort and energy was great in the third quarter (23-10) after a poor first half. And we did a good job defensively as DMACC didn’t shoot well from the floor (.318) but sending them to the free throw line 27 times and our turnovers were the difference. We have to be able to make better decisions and execute with the game on the line and unfortunately we just aren’t doing that right now. I have a lot of hopes for this group as they have the capability to put big points on the board like they did against Marshalltown. But they have to understand that it doesn’t just happen on its own. You have to earn the right to score big and win games.”