Gallery by Tina Laney
Harmony Mills wasted no time making a big splash in the pond that is high school girls basketball.
The talented freshman opened the season with 20 points against Richwood and had 41 points Monday night at Montcalm.
As expected, opposing coaches are now responding in kind with aggressive defense all over floor, trying to neutralize Mills as a scoring threat.
Wednesday night in Coal City, Sherman was the first to implore that strategy, but Mills’ teammates answered the call.
Showing they can play some stiff defense of their own, the Patriots subdued the Tide 45-19.
“I thought we played pretty solid defense tonight and that is all you can ask for,” Independence head coach Mark Cuthbert said. “I am really proud of our girls.”
Independence hit the floor running to take a 10-0 lead less than three minutes into the contest.
Mills scored the first four points before a stickback from Makaila Bolen and a bucket from Jenna Harvey doubled the advantage.
A steal from Bolen and an outlet pass the Mills made it a double figure advantage before Maleigha Mullins scored for Sherman.
Bolen was a big factor in the game ending the night with six key points inside, but she was also a force in the paint with eight rebounds.
“Makaila is gaining more confidence,” Cuthbert said. “She struggles some when she misses a couple shots, but tonight she played more aggressive and that is what we need out of her.”
The Patriots restored the 10-point lead by the end of the quarter, but missed five free-throws along the way which have broken the game open early.
“We have struggled all year with that. Then we had the state (football) championship game last week, so we didn’t get to practice,” Cuthbert said. “Anytime you don’t get to practice you aren’t getting shots. It is early and we can only get better.”
The lead went to 15 points after a bucket from Hailey Ratliff and three made free throws from Kamryn Wooten.
When Bolen was not controlling the paint, Wooten was the Patriots. Wooten also yanked down eight rebounds on the night.
“She is a great athlete and she picks up things well. It is only her second year of playing so she is getting her feet wet in the varsity action and doing really well,” Cuthbert said. “We just have to get her stronger on the offensive end.”
With Mills still facing stiff defense all over the floor, the lead went from 18 at the break to 23 on a bucket from Bolen and a triple from Ally Hypes.
“We had some other kids step up tonight. Ally was just coming back from the flu and wasn’t able to play with us Monday,” Cuthbert said. “You have to expect that (pressure) after what Harmony has done the first two weeks, but we had other girls step up and that is how you defeat that. We can only hope to continue to do that.”
The Tide ran off six straight points, but the lead was back to 19 by the end of the third quarter.
Mills tallied nine points in the final period and led all scorers with 22 on the night.
The win keeps Independence undefeated over its first three games of the season.
“There is a lot of promise for this team if we keep working,” Cuthbert said. “It’s great for these girls because they have worked hard during the off-season and through the preseason. They give me everything they have and as a coach, that is all you can ask for.”
The test gets stiffer next Wednesday when the Patriots travel to Hico to face Midland Trail.
S: 4 4 7 4 – 19
I: 14 12 8 11 – 45
S: Annika Roop 6, Mullins 2, AnaBeth Keith 6, Hope Keith 2, Dana Ferrell 2, Summer Harvey 1.
I: Mills 22, Bolen 6, Zoey Bragg 5, Jenna Harvey 4, Hypes 3, Wooten 3, Ratliff 2.
3-pointers: S: 1 (Roop); I: 4 (Mills 2, Hypes, Bragg)
