Spotting your opponent a 17-0 lead at the end of the first quarter is generally a recipe for disaster.
Such was the case for the Allegan girls’ basketball team in its Wolverine Conference affair with Plainwell on Friday, Feb. 3.
The Trojans jumped out to that huge lead—which eventually swelled to 20-0 at the start of the second quarter—and cruised to the 47-36 win at the Tigers’ expense.
The victory was the ninth in the last 10 games for Plainwell, which improved to 12-4 overall.
“We’ve been playing some good basketball lately, so I wasn’t surprised that we came out of the gates strong,” Plainwell coach Tim Rieman said. “But you never expect to be up 17-0 at the end of the first quarter, especially against a good team that’s as well-coached as Allegan is.
“There are still some little things I’m not too happy about, like missing too many free throws, but you can’t be too disappointed with a game like this.”
Revenge was one of the driving forces for Plainwell.
“This snapped a four-game losing streak to Allegan,” Rieman said, whose team dropped a 49-38 decision to the Tigers last month. “So I really wanted to get this win and I know the girls did, too.”
The Trojans utilized a balanced scoring attack that saw six players score at least six points, but none scored more than the 11 turned in by Jaylan Tran.
Sara White added nine points, followed by Alivia TerMeer, Hayley Hawkes and Sophie Monroe with seven each. Korrin Johnson chipped in with six points.
For Allegan, Leslie Scane matched Tran for game-high scoring honors with 11 points. Delanie Nahikian was next in line with nine points.
“We have to play a full 32 minutes of basketball,” Allegan coach Josh Holman said. “That was my message to the girls after the game. We have to play a full 32 minutes.
“Over the final three quarters, we outscored (Plainwell) by six points. We just got off to that bad start when nothing seemed to be going our way.”
Holman was pleased with the way his team continued to battle.
“The girls worked hard,” he said. “I’m proud of them for that. When you’re facing a 17-0 deficit, it would be easy to just give up. They didn’t do that.”
.