Brookfield Central angling for conference title
Lancers, Dashers tied for first in GMC
Brookfield Central's Erin Lueder goes hard to the basket against West Allis Central at home Feb. 19. Photo By C.T. Kruger
The Brookfield Central girls basketball team extended its winning streak to six games and stayed atop the Greater Metro Conference following an impressive 49-35 home win over West Allis Central on Friday.
And like it has all year, the Lancers' know-how paid off.
When West Allis Central pulled to within two points at 20-18 in the third quarter, Brookfield Central coach Dan Wandrey used a West Allis timeout to tell his veteran players what they needed to do.
"They were in that 1-3-1 (defense) in the second half, and we weren't being aggressive enough," Wandrey said. "We talked in a couple of the breaks that the less aggressive we are offensively, the more aggressive it allows them to be on defense."
Following the timeout, Brookfield Central went on a 19-4 run over the next nine-plus minutes to take a commanding 39-22 lead with less than 3 minutes 30 seconds to play, closing the door on West Allis Central's conference title hopes.
The Lancers (14-5, 11-1) remained tied with Divine Savior Holy Angels (12-7, 11-1) for the GMC lead with the win. Central dipped to 14-5, 10-3.
The Lancers, who entered the week ranked fifth in the MyCommunityNOW.com power rankings, are in search of their third straight conference title. Their final two conference games are at Menomonee Falls (3-9 GMC, 5-14 overall) on Friday, Feb. 26., and at home against Wauwatosa East (2-10, 4-15) on Thursday, March 4. DSHA plays at West Allis Central and at Menomonee Falls on the same days.
Experience counts
The Lancers' veteran play was too much to overcome for the young Bulldogs, who start just one senior in Loyola-recruit Lauren Hibbard along with two sophomores and two juniors.
"We do have some young kids, and they have to learn how to play through these types of games," first-year Bulldogs coach Dave Mlachnik said. "In the first half, we were so revved up, you know, that we were going a hundred miles an hour rather than letting the game come to us."
Experience is something that comes with time, something Mlachnik understands.
"They (the Lancers) are an experienced team," Mlachnik said. "They've won the conference championship the last two years, and we knew going in we were going to have to play a solid game and have to beat them. … I just thought their experience paid off down the stretch."
Lancers gaining reputation
Hibbard led all scorers with 18 points. Brookfield Central's Erin Lueder (16) and Valerie Rose Agnello (12) combined for 28 points.
It was the Lancers' 11th consecutive win over the Bulldogs dating back to Jan. 28, 2005.
The Lancers are proving they are not a team you want to play down the stretch.
In their six-game winning streak, they have outscored their opponents, 306-186, an average margin of victory of 20 points per contest. What is more impressive is the teams they are beating are a combined 64-48.
"When we made the schedule that we made, we knew that we were putting ourselves in position to maybe lose some games, where in the past couple years we really haven't," Wandrey said. "We thought that the risk was worth it; and right now, it's proving to be true.
"We thought playing a few more high-quality nonconference games would really help us for this part of the year. We were ready."
EARLIER IN THE WEEK
Brookfield Central 58, New Berlin Eisenhower 36: Central outscored visiting Eisenhower, 31-12, in the second and fourth quarters to handle the NOW No. 2 ranked Lions in its nonconference matchup Feb. 16. The Lady Lancers knocked down six 3-pointers to go along with 10-of-12 free throws. BC's Erin Lueder led all scorers with 15 points; she has reached double-figures in five of the last six games.
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