FeedsPlymouth overcomes Salem in second half
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Chealsea Davis (34) defends a shot against Plymouth's Shaakira Haywood (33). Plymouth won, 35-33.The Salem Lady Rocks and the Plymouth Lady Wildcats proved that no lead is ever too big to have—or overcome.
Salem’s nine-point lead separated the two rivals at halftime on Tuesday night in Plymouth’s gymnasium but it was the Wildcats’ high-energy second half that overcame the deficit and won the game, 35-33.
It was neck-and neck through the first quarter with five lead changes. Salem won the quarter, 10-8.
Taylor Langham extended the Lady Rocks’ lead, 12-8, with the opening basket of the second quarter. Plymouth battled back with a 5-0 run, taking the lead at the 5:15 mark of the frame.
A few Plymouth turnovers late in the half turned the odds back in Salem’s favor.
Junior Alaya Mitchell blocked a shot, grabbed the ball and went the length of the court for a score with 22 seconds left and senior Teresa Coppiellie stole the ball, made a shot, was fouled and made the free throw to cap off a 10-0 run for the Rocks. The outburst put Salem up, 22-13 at the half.
Salem appeared to have things under control. Langham scored the first two points of the new half to give the Rocks an 11-point lead at 5:40 of the third.
Then things changed.
Plymouth found new energy and, more importantly, the basket.
For the rest of the third the only points Salem would put on the board would be two deuces from Coppiellie. In the mean time, sophomore guard Jalesa Moise started a 13-4 run with a triple. Another triple from freshman Stacey Klonowski brought Plymouth to within two, 28-26, at the third-period buzzer.
At the 5:27 mark of the final period, Moise stole the ball, made the layup, was fouled and converted the free throw for a three-point play, giving the Wildcats the lead, 29-28. Later, sophomore Shakira Haywood followed suit with a three-point play—a basket plus a free throw—for a 34-31 lead with 18 seconds left. Plymouth held on for the win.
“The thing they did different was—and I don’t even know if it was different—they played their zone a little more aggressively and they didn’t give us very many second-shot opportunities,” said Salem Coach Fred Thomann of Plymouth’s second-half changes. “They did a great job of neutralizing the offensive rebounds. We missed shots early and they made a few.
“They did a great job; their players stepped up and really got with the deficit and worked through it and when they got the lead or the game tied they believed and got it done.”
Haywood, Kelsi Robinson and Klonowski each scored eight points for the Wildcats. Moise added seven and junior Megan Davis added four in the win.
“We just talked about contesting the open shooter,” said Plymouth Coach Richelle Reilly about her half-time conference with her team. “We didn’t want (Salem) to have wide-open, set shots. We talked about playing a little more up-tempo offensively when we got the ball and being a little more aggressive and attack the basket.”
The Wildcats were 3-1 going into the game and Reilly hopes her team can build off the victory.
“This is a really good win for us,” she said. “We learned a little bit about ourselves tonight and what it takes to win big games. I feel we had one bad minute at the end of the second quarter and after that I thought we did a pretty good job. That’s what playing for, I guess, 31 minutes can get you. We were rewarded for our efforts.”
Coppiellie led the Lady Rocks with 15 points.
“We just have to keep working,” Thomann said. “We have some talented players and when talented players play hard and play together they can be very successful. We played hard and at times there didn’t seem to be the togetherness that we’ve demonstrated over the course of the summer and the season.”
Salem beat Northville 38-24 on Thursday, while Churchill topped Plymouth 53-44. For more details see next week’s edition.
