GIRLS BASKETBALL: Waterford Kettering passes by Lake Orion

Lake Orion junior Shannon Falter tries to get around a pick and Waterford Kettering’s Marissa Brady during Monday’s Class A pre-district. Courtesy Photo.

BY DAN STICKRADT

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dan.stickradt@northoaklandsports.com

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LAKE ORION — Losing senior forward Lillie School five games ago to injury has turned out to help Waterford Kettering spread the wealth.

It has forced the Captains to get several players more involved in the offensive flow.

Kettering went on a passing clinic in the second quarter against Class A district host Lake Orion Monday night, going on a 14-6 surge to build a 28-17 lead at the half. Behind some crisp ball movement and ability to knock down shots, the Captains went on to post an impressive 59-33 victory over Lake Orion to advance to the district semifinals.

Kettering (16-5) will face arch-rival Waterford Mott at 5 p.m. Wednesday in the district semifinals.

Kettering had 15 assists on 22 made baskets (22-for-49 shooting) and routinely zipped the ball inside and out looking for the open shooter. On the defensive end, the Captains forced the Dragons into 20 turnovers.

“We did a better job moving the ball than we have been doing, which created a lot of very good shots. And we found some holes in their defense,” offered Kettering coach Scott Woodhull. “I watched a couple games of them on film and they moved really well with their trap. We handled the trap really well today.

“I thought we moved the ball really well. We are not a selfish team at all. We were finding people in some good spots today,” continued Woodhull. “We knocked some shots in. Our post players made some shots inside. We kind of struggled there, not just them, but as a team the last few games. Today we did a much better job making shots.”

Lake Orion had to work for every contested shot, and only attempted 12 field goals (making four) in the first half. The Dragons shot 8-for-15 from the foul line in the first half to keep within striking distance down 28-17 at the half.

The Captains continued to sail away in the third quarter, breaking the game open with a 16-4 run to build a 44-21 advantage entering the fourth quarter.

Kettering outscored Lake Orion 15-12 in the fourth quarter.

“Kettering is a very good team. They always have been,” said first-year Lake Orion coach Kevin Kopec. “We wanted to get them to turn it over and (force them) into making big outside shots. I think in the third quarter that was the difference. They had some players hit some big shots and that allowed them to build their lead pull away from us. They didn’t allow us to climb back in.”

Lake Orion (8-13) played the season with only one senior and saw All-State sophomore guard Maddie Novak transfer to Birmingham Detroit Country Day in late January.

The young Dragons finished the regular season 5-5 down the stretch, relying on several promising young players to shoulder the load.

“We came a long ways. At one time we were 3-7, but we ended up going 5-5 at the end of the season with a young team,” said Kopec. “We’ve had some ups and downs. We finished the last month pretty strong, all things considered.”

Junior Melissa Brady led Kettering’s balanced attack with 13 points, nine rebounds and two blocked shots, as eight of 10 Captains scored points. Senior guard Maddy Kase had a fine floor game with 12 points, four assists, four rebounds and three steals, sophomore guard Ashley Watson scored 11 and sophomore center Claire Barghahn contributed nine points, seven rebounds and three assists out of the post for Kettering.

Junior guard Cameron Colton, who missed half of the season with an injury, scored 17 points on the strength of 9-of-10 foul shooting to lead Lake Orion. Junior forward Lauryn VanLoon added six points and four boards for the Dragons, who finished the night 8-for-30 shooting from the floor.

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