U/14 Ballarat Girls Prove To Much To Handle For Kilsyth

Both teams faced early struggles converting field goals in the opening quarter until Millie Cracknell converted on a three pointer to break the drought. Both Ballarat and Kilsyth had no trouble getting into the paint but it was neither team’s ability to finish that kept them out of the box score. Ballarat went on a 6 – 0 before Kilsyth finally converted its first basket of the game on a euro step layup from Georgia Booth with 4:20 left in the first. Ballarat’s strong ball movement combined with Kilsyth players taking tough contested layups in 2 on 1 situations lead to an 11-4 lead for the home team.

In the second quarter Ballarat used relentless energy to crash the offensive glass. On one particular sequence Ballarat pulled down 6 consecutive rebounds which lead to a wide open mid-range jump shot. Kilsyth responded by knocking down back to back to back baskets to take a 15-14 lead with 4:56 left in the first half. With under a minute remaining Ballarat’s quick guard were able to pick off two Kilsyth passes back to back and convert both a layup and layup and-1. Ballarat led 26-23 at the break.

In the third both teams started the third how they started the game – wild shots and sloppy fouls. Ballarat was able to push the lead out further with three unanswered baskets and an offensive foul call on Kilsyth. Mariah Derkson of Kilsyth helped keep the Ballarat lead from jumping out further with her strong defensive rebounding, limiting Ballarat to just one shot opportunity per possession.

In the fourth Ballarat failed to convert on several offensive rebounding opportunities that would have further extended their lead. The silver lining to Ballarat’s dominance on the boards meant that Kilsyth only received four offensive possessions in a four minute span, even if Ballarat was failing to convert on baskets, it kept the ball out of the opposition’s hands. Ballarat’s small guards continued to harass and pressure Kilsyth down the stretch resulting in a 49-38 victory for the U/14’s.