RANDY HISNER
WZBD.com
FORT WAYNE – After three straight wins against state-ranked opponents, the Bellmont Braves lost a hard-fought 61-57 ballgame to the unranked, but well-respected, Northrop Bruins Tuesday at Northrop. The loss snapped a nine-game win streak.
The game was intense from the tip-off, both teams playing tight, scrappy man-to-man defense. It was also a game marked by big runs, the decisive one coming late in the fourth quarter when Northrop scored nine straight points in 70 seconds, flipping a five-point deficit into a four-point lead.
With the Braves ahead 52-47, Alivia Rice began the comeback with a flurry of five points in six seconds, starting with a three-pointer at the 1:49 mark, then adding two free throws at 1:43 after the Bruins stole Bellmont’s inbounds pass and she drew a foul. A fast break layup from Khala Williams-Thomas (following a Bruin block of Lanie French’s three-point attempt) and Jackson’s two free throws capped off the rally, with Northrop ahead 56-52. The Bruins hit five of eight free throws in the closing seconds to keep the Braves at bay.
The win was Northrop coach Katie Jackson’s 100th of her career, but after the game she only wanted to talk about her team’s grit. “They were competitive; they were tough,” she said. “I wholeheartedly believe they played selfless basketball tonight. Even when their shots weren’t falling, they were sprinting back in transition, which is something we harped on all week.”
She knew it would take a superior effort to compete with the Braves. “They’re super athletic,” she said. “They kind of play like they’re on two cups of coffee; they play with a lot of energy.”
A pair of threes by freshman Ashley Bleke and another by classmate Kaitlyn Barton helped the Braves (15-2) get off to a fast start and a 15-11 lead in the first quarter.
Then came the only quarter that Bellmont lost, as Northrop (12-5), behind eight points by Swynn Jackson, dominated the Braves in the second period, 19-9, to build a 30-24 halftime lead. The Bruins hit three of their five three-point attempts in the quarter, including two out of two by Jackson, on their way to a sizzling 8-for-14 (57%) for the game.
Emily Bleke opened the third quarter with a three from well beyond the top of the key to make it a three-point game. Jackson countered with a drive down the left lane to put the Bruins up, 32-27, but then Bellmont went on a 9-0 run to grab a 36-32 lead at the 3:59 mark. Emily Bleke, who led the Braves with 21 points, fueled the rally with a short jumper and a three-point play on a fast break layup. Oni Krueckeberg added an acrobatic spin move and scoop shot, and Mary Bleke contributed a pair of free throws.
But the Bruins closed the quarter with a 10-2 run, with 6-2 junior forward Miley Wareing hitting two inside buckets in less than a minute and Jackson adding a layup and a pair of free throws, to take a 42-38 advantage into the final period.
Jackson’s three-pointer just fifteen seconds into the fourth quarter gave the Bruins a 45-38 lead, their biggest of the game.
As they did in the third quarter, the Braves responded with another big run, this time 11-0, to regain the lead at 49-45. Threes by Kate Kitson and Lanie French started the rally, and Emily Bleke followed with an old-fashioned three-point play. Ashley Bleke topped it off with an aggressive drive from out front with 5:40 left.
Jackson finally got the Bruins back on the scoreboard with a slick back cut and reverse lay-up, but Emily Bleke’s free throw and Gwen Laurent’s layup on an out-of-bounds play gave Bellmont its biggest lead since late in the first quarter at 52-47.
It was then that Rice started the Bruins’ game-changing rally.
“We didn’t have the energy that we typically do tonight,” said Bellmont coach Andy Heim. “We’re coming off of three pretty big games in a couple weeks, so I don’t know if that factored into it. Also, you’ve got to look ahead to Norwell on Saturday, so it’s kind of a weird moment in our schedule right now.”
“But I was really, really happy with how we battled back,” he added. “We could have folded very easily, but we didn’t. We came back and knocked down some big shots.”
Jackson led all scorers with 25 points. She was ultra efficient, going 5-for-8 on twos, 3-of-5 on threes, and 6-of-8 from the free throw line. Williams-Thomas had 14 for Northrop. Wareing and Brilee Day each added seven.
Ashley Bleke scored 10 for the Braves. Barton had seven, French and Laurent five each, Mary Bleke four, Kitson three, and Krueckeberg two.
Bellmont won the JV game, 27-24, to improve to 5-11. Katelyn Borne led the Braves with 16 points. Hadley Caffee scored nine.
Bellmont will host Norwell Saturday in a crucial NE8 matchup.
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