Troy shuts down perimeter to KO Kettering, 55-43

BY JAKE LOURIM

STUDENT CORRESPONDANT

TROY — It was just one of those nights for Waterford Kettering.

Host Troy held Kettering to just a 2-for-25 performance from 3-point range, and the Colts ousted the Captains 55-43 from the Class A state tournament in the district first round game Monday night.

With the win, Troy will move on to play Waterford Mott Wednesday at 5:30 in a district

semifinal at Troy. The final is Friday. Pontiac and Auburn Hills Avondale, who beat Troy Athens late Monday 67-41, will meet in the nightcap Wednesday to determine the other district finalist.

Kettering came back to tie the game at 8-8 early on, but it wasn’t tied for long. Sabria

Cotton hit a long 3 and Rachael Zelmanski added a 3-point play. Katy McCuish, Cotton, and Liz Siepker each poured in buckets from various ranges to put the Colts in front 20-9 at the end of the first quarter.

Kettering made some attempts at a comeback periodically throughout the rest of the night, but its inability to score from long range thwarted every run.

The Captains went 12:26 without a field goal in the late second and early third quarters.

They shot 30 2-pointers and 25 3-pointers, knocking down 11 two-point field goals and two 3-pointers.

“We made a concerted effort that we had to put a hand up and check the 3-point shooter,” said Troy coach Dennis Koch. “We gave 32 minutes of good basketball tonight.”

Kettering picked the wrong night to go ice cold from the field.

“We didn’t make shots,” Kettering coach Scott Woodhull said simply. “We got a little quick. We got every shot we wanted, but at some point you’ve got to start knocking something in. They did a nice job defending.”

Without a steady source of offense, no comeback that Kettering tried followed through.

However, that doesn’t mean they weren’t close.

A fast break layup and a jumper back-to-back pulled Kettering to within nine with still six

minutes to play in the fourth quarter. Troy junior guard Karin Moss had an answer with a

driving layup, and the Colts were able to play even until a time-out with 3:09 left and the

score at 45-35.

Kettering stole the ensuing in-bounds pass and had a chance to whittle the deficit down to eight. The Captains turned the ball right back over, however, and Sydney Heath dished the steal to Liz Siepker for an easy fast break bucket. That was Kettering’s last gasp.

“We didn’t take advantage of several steals,” said Woodhull. “They hustled back, and they’re a bit bigger than us. They did a nice job of challenging shots. We had to shoot

layups over big people.”

Meanwhile, Troy found a rhythm offensively in the first quarter and had that rhythm when they needed it throughout the game. Moss hit a pair of very timely 3-pointers in the third quarter that built the lead to as large as 34-17.

“Karin did a decent job of taking quality shots,” said Koch. “We knew we were going to need to take the ball to the basket.”

That penetration found Troy a lot of easy shots in the paint throughout the night.

“Their guards got to the basket and had their way with us,” Woodhull said. “We didn’t help on defense. They were kicking it out and making shots. They penetrated and shot very, very well today.”

In the end, the main storyline: the Captains, champions of the KLAA North Division, couldn’t find their shooting range.

“(It’s) life,” Woodhull said simply. “It happens. You’re going to have those nights.”

He added that his Captains — which finish the season at 19-2 — tend to shoot a lot from long range.

“The last few games we haven’t shot well, and we’ve paid for it,” said Woodhull.

Just one of those nights.

Category: High School, Prep Wraps, Troy