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Nicolet takes the bite out of the Huskies

In a game that was never close, Nicolet dominated Eau Claire North from the opening tip for a 72-46 victory in a Division 1 girls basketball state semi-final.

The only thing in doubt after the opening minutes was the number of Division 1 scoring records Nicolet would set. The Knights ended up just short of the tournament record for points scored (79) and largest margin of victory (35).

Nicolet’s pressure defense, length, and quickness caused havoc all day, and it reflected in the stats for Eau Claire North. The Huskies finished with 25 turnovers, with 17 coming in the first half. The first half was a Knight-mare for North, who had just 19 points and 17 shot attempts to go with those 17 turnovers.

Nicolet, meanwhile, was able to get virtually any shot they wanted, connecting on 12 of 18 attempts in the first half while going 11 for 15 from the line. UW-Milwaukee recruit Ashley Green used a variety of impressive drives to the basket to tally 15 points prior to the break.

In the second half, the inside game of Northwestern signee Alex Cohen proved to be the thorn in North’s side, as the 6-4 senior scored 16 point on 7 of 9 shooting.

Despite the impressive performance, Nicolet head coach Corey Wolf will have a few things to hammer home to keep the Knights grounded. They committed 17 turnovers of their own, and also allowed North to outscore them 19-10 in the fourth quarter.

Still, it was about as dominating of a performance as you will see at the state tournament. Eau Claire North did not attempt a shot for 2 1/2 minutes (by which point they were down 9-0), and spent most of the first half with more turnovers than shot attempts.

Notes:  Nicolet’s largest lead was 39 points at the 6:44 mark of the fourth quarter…Nicolet scored 48 points in the paint and 32 points off turnovers…Alicia Olson led North with 12 points…Both teams played Thursday night as their Super Tuesday games got postponed not once but twice.

Middleton’s win isn’t pretty, but it’s a win

It wasn’t a pretty performance for either side, but the final score couldn’t have looked better for Middleton, who blew open a tight fourth-quarter game to claim a 50-39 victory over Pius XI in a Division 1 semi-final.

The teams combined for 46 turnovers, 26 by Middleton and 20 by Pius, in a game with plenty of whistles and stoppages. Seniors Kerry Gardner and Rachael Ecklund both came up big down the stretch for the Cardinals.

After Pius’ Tierra Bender hit a three-pointer to tie the game at 34 just 21 seconds into the fourth quarter, Gardner hit a triple of her own and then converted an old-fashioned three-point play to put Middleton up six and the Cardinals never looked back.

Down the stretch Pius missed shot after shot, and recorded its last field goal at the 4:18 mark of the fourth quarter.

It was a tough finish for the defending state champions, who opted to move back up into Division 1 this year after the initial 5-Division model placed them in Division 2.

Notes:  Gardner scored a game-high 16 points and added 8 rebounds and 4 assists…Ecklund recorded a double-double with 13 points and 11 rebounds…Tierra Bender (11), Terri Bender (11), and Ally Matkovich (10) all hit double figures for Pius…Julia Borsari, who scored in double figures two of the Lady Popes three games last year, was held scoreless although she did add 7 rebounds…Pius was just 2 of 19 from behind the three-point line…Middleton will be seeking it’s first girls basketball title in seven state trips.