Gators' press takes toll on Red Raiders

Crystal Lake South guard Stephanie Melone sprints past Huntley guard Kristina Stolzman in the fourth quarter Wednesday in Huntley. Crystal Lake South defeated Huntley, 46-36. (Daniel J. Murphy – dmurphy@shawmedia.com )

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HUNTLEY – A couple of minor tweaks to Crystal Lake South’s full-court pressure defense made a big difference in Wednesday’s matchup against Huntley.

The Gators’ zone press harassed the Red Raiders into 24 turnovers, and South rallied from a seven-point deficit in the second half to take a surprising 46-36 Fox Valley Conference Valley Division victory on the road.

“Before we’ve done a man-to-man press and we decided to go to a zone to start stealing the ball more,” said South forward Sara Mickow, who had five steals. “We really tried to go for steals and not play timid and that really paid off in the end.”

South’s press set the tone from the start, forcing 10 first-quarter turnovers and keeping the Gators in the game.

South (9-13 overall, 3-4 FVC Valley) struggled offensively, making only three field goals in the first half, but their defense kept them in it.

Huntley (11-9, 5-3) shot less than 20 percent and managed only an 18-15 cushion at the half.

“If we’re getting them under 20 points, our defensive end is getting it done,” South coach Kyle McCaughn said. “Our intensity level was there right from the get-go.”

The Gators’ high energy level remained high in the second half and it resulted in better offensive execution. Trailing by seven in the third quarter, Mickow sparked the Gators’ comeback with consecutive putback baskets. She gave the Gators their first lead since the first quarter when she converted a three-point play off a strong post move in the paint with 4:51 to go in the fourth quarter.

“We ran our plays, the kids made great reads to get to her,” McCaughn said. “When we run our plays, if she’s open we get her the ball and she does a great job of kicking it back out.”

South forced another six turnovers in the fourth quarter and the Red Raiders shot only 2 of 11 from the field. After converting only 8 of 16 from the free-throw line in the first half, South stepped up and made 9 of 13 to close the game.

“We’re not defending as well collectively as a group as we have been,” said Huntley coach Steve Raethz, whose team has lost three in a row. “The second aspect of that is how we’re handling the basketball right now.”

Mickow finished with 20 points and 10 rebounds for the Gators while Sam Andrews led Huntley with 14 points.

The victory over Huntley snapped the Gators’ two-game losing streak and avenged an eight-point loss in December.

“A win like this against a quality team like Huntley is a great win for us,” McCaughn said. “It’s one step on hopefully a long line of steps to get some wins here and get some momentum.”