Friday, November 26, 2021 Messenger-Inquirer
DEVILS
got better depth,” Locher said, “and, of course, we want to score of f turnovers, let our defense ignite our of fense. FROM PAGE 8 “On of fense we’ll run some, but we’re also more confident in here this season with a lot of setting things up and letting our confidence, and Lizy has a pretty playmakers make plays in the good perimeter, shot and she halfcour t — take advantage of some finishes well around the basket — mismatches we’ll have. her ability to rebound will be key “After that, it just comes down to for us. rebounding, getting to the foul line “Unique is a playmaking point and making our free throws (OHS guard who is a great defender, Emma is a good shooter, and Olivia shot just 52% from the line last season). We have to take advantage is a good defender and rebounder.” of ever y scoring oppor tunity we Opponents can expect the Lady Devils to bring the heat, defensively. provide for ourselves, including making our foul shots.” “We’ll press a lot because we’ve
OHS FROM PAGE 7
be very successful this season and beyond.” Drake says he likes the OHS mix. “We have a lot of players here who can play the game at a high level, a lot of interchangeable parts that will make us tough to defend and will help make us tough at the defensive end,” Drake said. “This is a versatile group, and we have the potential to do a lot of things well. “We can be very good defensively as long as every single player buys into what we’re trying to do. With our depth, we should be able to have the
ACES FROM PAGE 9
Kentucky’s best, coming off a season in which he averaged 14.8 points and a team-high 6.7 rebounds per game. Webb shot an impressive 58% from the floor, but made only 59% of his free-throw attempts. “Ji is an unbelievable athlete,” Riley said. “His body is starting to fill out, and he’s becoming a much stronger presence on the interior. His athleticism, his ability to play defense and block shots, and the fact that he can score inside and out makes him special and another matchup nightmare for opponents.” Also expected to be a significant scoring threat for the Aces this season will be 5-10 junior guard Parker Gray, who averaged 6.9 points per game and shot a sizzling 46% from 3-point range as a sophomore.
five players who are on the court going all-out the whole time they’re out there. “Ball pressure can be a real help in terms of rebounding and limiting shots for our opponents. We want to create turnovers and score at the other end. Our defense should be able to ignite our offense if things play out the way they should.” Being locked in will be essential, Drake believes. “We have to stay focused on what we’re trying to accomplish, where we want to go, and we need that focus every day in practice and every night we play a game,” Drake said. “If we become the team I think we’re capable of becoming, we’ll be competing for postseason championships.” “Parker can score the basketball,” Riley said. “He’s a quality player who really came on for us late in the season.” As did Tut Carrico, a tough-minded 5-10 junior guard who knocked down 5-of-7 shots from 3-point land a year ago. “Tut came up big for us in the postseason,” Riley said. “We need him to make shots and defend.” Catholic will also realy heavily on 5-9 sophomore guard Reid Clark, a hustling combo guard who will take pressure off Griffith at the point. Others in the mix include Jamison Wall, Wyatt Jenkins, Deuce Sims, Kaiser French and Jody Hobgood. “We would love to advance deep in the All ‘A’ Classic, get to the (KHSAA) 3rd Region Tournament and take our best shot,” said Riley, whose Aces have won a 3rd Region-best 12 regional tournament games since he arrived at Catholic in 2015-16. “I’m proud of what we’ve been able to do here so far, and I’m excited to see what we can do from here on out.”
BASKETBALL PREVIEW 2021
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CATHOLIC
ERA
FROM PAGE 10
FROM PAGE 6
“Rachel creates mismatch problems for most teams, Lexie is becoming more of a catch-and-shoot scorer who can hit the 3-pointer, and Lauren does a good job slashing through the paint to the rim — both Keelins have really improved their shooting.” Robertson is also going to get help from two freshmen — 5-9 guard-for ward Aubrey Randolph and Hancock County transfer guard Karmin Riley, who led the Lady Hornets in scoring (14.2 ppg) as an eighth-grader. “Aubrey is ver y fast, ver y athletic, and I look for her to be a great defensive player for us,” Robertson said. “Karmin is a great shooter and will help make us a better team.” Catholic appears ready to go. “I think we should be a regional contender, with what we have coming back and what we have coming in,” Robertson said. “We need to buy into the we-over-me mindset, play together, play for each other and play hard all the time — we do this, and we’ll be all right.”
“This is a solid group of players,” Haile said, “and some of them, like Zoey Beehn, need just a little more varsity experience to be able to help us a lot.” Lady Panther fans can expect a revved-up pace of play. “We’re going to play at a faster pace than they’ve played at in the past, and that’s where the added emphasis and focus on physical conditioning comes into play,” Haile said. “We’ll play in-your-face man-to-man defense, and we’d like to run some ball-screen offense — get the ball to our scorers at places on the floor where they can score. “The main this is for us to be competitive on ever y play, ever y day, in games and in practices — if we do that, I believe we have the talent to be where we want to be by the end of the season.”
2021
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