By Sean McNamara, For Lootpress
RACHEL – A battle of two of Class AAA’s best took place in Rachel on Wednesday as the No. 2 North Marion Huskies overcame a 15-point halftime deficit to defeat the No. 7 Robert C. Byrd Eagles, 52-47, in Big 10 Conference play.
With the win, North Marion improves to 10-1 on the season while the Eagles drop to 7-4 following the loss.
While North Marion shot 17-of-55 from the field, 15-fo-29 from the free-throw line and 3-of-20 from behind the arc, the defensive pressure, particularly in the second half, was paramount as the Huskies forced 26 RCB turnovers in the game while only committing 11 themselves.
With the extra possessions gained via turnovers, along with key free throws and baskets in the third and fourth quarters, the Huskies were able to come back from the 35-20 halftime deficit to earn the victory.
“There were a lot of good game situations there that may help us down the road,” NM coach Mike Parrish said. “It was good that they made some of those plays, but it was the way we played the first half that made it so we had to make those plays at the end.”
The buildup to that comeback started with a strong effort early on from the Eagles, with 2022 Class AAA first-team all-stater Avery Childers and Carly Curotz leading the way.
Childers, who went on to score a game-high 25 points, put up 13 points in the first quarter thanks to the passing of her teammates and her ability to finish inside. At the end of one quarter, the score read 19-13, Eagles.
“We knew that she was going to give us fits inside,” Parrish said. “We weren’t doing what we were supposed to defensively in the first half. We were letting them do what they want to.”
After Childers opened the second quarter with her team’s first six points, she picked up her second foul and was relegated to the bench, making way for Curotz to take over a bulk of the scoring duties.
Curotz answered the call, scoring eight points the rest of the quarter and helping her team pull ahead, 35-20.
“I thought we moved the ball and made sharp passes,” RCB coach Robert Shields, whose Eagles shot 13-of-23 from the field in the first half, said. “We controlled the tempo of the game in the first half.”
A few halftime adjustments on the defensive end for North Marion helped the tide of the game turn in the home team’s favor over the next 16 minutes.
Defensively, North Marion forced 10 Robert C. Byrd turnovers in the third quarter while holding the Eagles without a field goal. That effort, along with baskets by Addie Elliott, Aubrey Hamilton, Olivia Toland and Emma Freels allowed the Huskies to erase the deficit completely as the two teams headed into the fourth quarter tied at 39.
“The third quarter was a killer for us,” Shields said. “We stayed within the game and let them chip away. We had opportunities, but the turnover battle really hurt us.”
The Eagles took the lead back quickly as Curotz hit her team’s first field goal of the second half early in the fourth quarter to put RCB up, 41-39.
A few moments later a layup by Freels gave the Huskies their first lead of the game at 43-42, and they would not relinquish it the rest of the way.
Robert C. Byrd pulled as close as one on two different occasions, but enough key free throws late from Freels, Elliott and Toland helped the Huskies secure the comeback win, 52-47.
“The first half we were awful defensively,” Parrish said. “We couldn’t shoot and we were awful defensively. We dug ourselves a hole, but we showed some heart, battled back and gave ourselves chances.”
Elliott led the way in scoring for the Huskies with 16 points to go along with five rebounds and four steals.
Toland and Freels each scored 13 while Toland posting four assists, five rebounds and four steals in the win.
In addition to Childers’ 25 points and 15 rebounds, Curotz scored 10 points with eight rebounds while Jayden Sturm had a pair of 3s for six points to go along with six rebounds, three assists and two steals.
Robert C. Byrd’s next game will come at home Friday against Liberty (Harrison) while North Marion’s next contest will come on the road Friday at Liberty.
North Marion 52 Robert C. Byrd 47
North Marion (10-1)
Addie Elliott 6 3-5 16, Emma Freels 4 4-11 13, Olivia Toland 4 4-6 13, Kierrabelle Harbert 2 2-3 6, Aubrey Hamilton 1 2-2 4, Brooklyn Jackson 0 0-2 0.
Robert C. Byrd (7-4)
Avery Childers 9 7-7 25, Carly Curotz 5 0-1 10, Jayden Sturm 2 0-0 6, Martina Howe 0 3-3 3, Olivia Lowther 0 2-4 2, Kyla Sutherlin 0 1-4 1.
NM;;13;7;19;13;;52
RCB;;19;16;4;8;;47
3-Pointers: NM 3 (Elliott, Freels, Toland) RCB 2 (Sturm 2).
