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Better Bobcats still can’t hang

Class 5A No. 11 Johnston jolts improving Marshalltown girls 62-20

T-R PHOTO BY STEPHEN KOENIGSFELD • Erica Johnson (4) drives past Johnston’s Alma Hodzic (32) during the first half of Friday night’s CIML Iowa Conference game at the Roundhouse. Johnson had three points in the Bobcats’ 62-20 loss.

Tayrn Knuth and the Class 5A 11th-ranked Johnston girls’ basketball team were too much for the Bobcats to handle Friday night, falling 62-20 in the Roundhouse.

Knuth posted 22 points to lead the Dragons (12-3, 6-1 CIML Iowa), just 24 hours removed from a 40-point game in a double-overtime loss to No. 10 Waukee. She posted a double-double with 13 more rebounds and even added an assist to her line.

Aspen Chadderdon and Madi Finch each had six points for the Bobcats (0-14, 0-5 CIML Iowa). Finch also corralled a team-high three rebounds.

During a taxing season, the Bobcats have continued to show MHS head coach Stacy O’Hare improvement in a variety of ways on the court. When the Bobcats got into their offense, all the pieces clicked. Chadderdon drove the ball in on a few final possessions to get four of her six points, and led the Bobcats on an 11-3 run in the fourth quarter.

Finch hit a step-back jumper after a series of passes finally found her for an open look. And senior Nya Gatwech pulled down a couple offensive rebounds and posed as a physical presence under the hoop on both offense and defense.

T-R PHOTO BY STEPHEN KOENIGSFELD

“We’ve talked so much about ‘you’re not going to put points up on the board if you’re not shooting the ball,'” O’Hare said. “All of them, all around are doing a better job about being more aggressive offensively. We don’t get a lot of open looks at the basket, so sometimes we’ve got to create some on our own.”

It’s this kind of improvement the Bobcats are relishing in as success. It’s the small steps moving forward toward a bigger picture for the girls’ basketball team. The components are there, but the speed hasn’t quite found the right gear to run at.

“Learning to slow ourselves down, and again, taking care of the ball and not panicking when they put a lot of pressure on us,” O’Hare said. “But for the most part, when we get into our half-court offense, it’s improving. It’s getting better and people are getting to the right spot. Little by little we see improvement each night.”

Johnston ran a brilliant man-defense, not using a full-court press, which is something Marshalltown has seen often this season. Getting the ball inbounds and across half court has been one of the key struggles for the winless Bobcats, but on Friday night, the Bobcats got to see how well they can run the offense at times, against one of the tougher teams in Class 5A.

“The more you do it in the game, the more it’s going to start to feel natural for the kids,” O’Hare said. “Hopefully as the season goes on here at the end, we’ll get some confidence in our shooting. Whether or not they press us or not, we’ve gotten better at handling the ball and being more aggressive.”

T-R PHOTO BY STEPHEN KOENIGSFELD

The loss was an improvement of the 70-10 defeat the Bobcats suffered in Johnston. With seven games to play in the season, the Bobcats will go to Mason City on Monday night for a 6:15 p.m. tipoff.

Johnston 62, Marshalltown 20

At Marshalltown

JOHNSTON (12-3, 6-1) — Maya McDermott 1 4-4 6, Paige Sieren 0 1-3 1, Jennah Johnson 6 0-0 15, Regan Neishim 2 2-2 6, Taryn Knuth 7 6-7 22, Brooke Wilmes 0 0-2 0, Aubrey McCombs 0 1-3 1, Macy Thompson 1-3 1, Alma Hodzic 1 1-2 3, Maddie Mock 1 2-2 4, Kiersten Bahr 0 0-0 0. TOTALS 21 17-26 62.

MARSHALLTOWN (0-14, 0-5) — Aspen Chadderdon 3 0-0 6, Vanessa Ceren 0 0-0 0, Vanessa Vergara 0 0-0 0, Madi Finch 3 0-0 6, Malory Henze 1 0-0 2, Alyvia Chadderdon 0 0-0 0, Erica Johnson 1 1-2 3, Luz Morciego 0 0-0 0, Kassy Vest 1 0-0 2, Nya Gatwech 0 1-2 1. TOTALS 9 2-4 20.

T-R PHOTO BY STEPHEN KOENIGSFELD

JOHNSTON 17 19 20 6 — 62

MHS 5 4 1 11 — 20

3-Point Goals–JHN 3 (Johnson 3). Rebounds–JHN 28 (Knuth 13), MHS 12 (Finch 3). Total Fouls–JHN 9, MHS 21. Fouled Out–None.

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