Lady Blackhawks open with win at Shadle

CHENEY – The Lady Blackhawks basketball squad is off to a 1-1 start, thanks to a split of non-league action last week.

Cheney opened with a come-from-behind 58-47 win at Greater Spokane League 3A opponent Shadle Park on Dec. 4, but followed that with a 51-40 loss at Northeast A League power Freeman on Dec. 6.

For first-year head coach Roxie Smith, it was the game Friday with the Scotties that was the better contest.

“We played better,” she said. “We had better intensity.”

The Lady Blackhawks led 21-19 at the half at Freeman — which has advanced to the state regional round of 16 the past two seasons. The Scotties took the lead after the end of the third quarter, 33-31, and thanks to what Smith called “a couple of breakdowns” by Cheney, found its way to the free throw line frequently in the fourth to stretch its lead.

The Lady Blackhawks had opportunities to close that gap, Smith added, but couldn’t capitalize.

Senior guard Maggie Smith led Cheney in scoring with 18 points, with junior Emma Evans adding seven and senior forward Shelby Draper chipping in six while hauling down 13 rebounds. The Lady Blackhawks turned the ball over 16 times, something Smith said was not as “impactful” as in past games.

“We handled their pressure, and trapping pressure rather easily,” she added.

What hurt the Lady Blackhawks was their 3-point shooting. Maggie Smith and Evans were a combined 3 for 17 from beyond the arc, shots Roxie Smith said the duo would hit 50 percent of the time.

Wednesday at Shadle that wasn’t the case as Smith and Evans each hit three 3-pointers in the win over the Highlanders. Cheney owned an eight-point lead, 21-13, at intermission, but thanks to the hosts 21-point third quarter, went into the final eight minutes trailing by three, 34-31.

In the fourth, the Lady Blackhawks got a spark from juniors Tylin Hertel, Halle Sargent and Makenna Benson, who brought some energy and change of pace to the game with them off the bench, Smith said. Cheney outscored Shadle Park 27-13 in the quarter en route to the win.

Maggie Smith led all scorers with 24 points, while Evans added 18 and Draper five to go with her 14 rebounds. Hertel and Evans also added six rebounds each.

Cheney committed 21 turnovers, normally a high amount but something Roxie Smith said was acceptable given the girls were being asked to push the pace of the game, while also learning to play with different player combinations.

“We’re asking them to make mistakes,” she said. “I think to compete later in the season, you’re OK with that.”

Cheney gets a sample of what might be in store for it later in the season during Great Northern League play as they travel to Clarkston on Friday, Dec. 13, to open league action against the Lady Bantams. Clarkston was 25-3 last year, winning the District 7 title by beating GNL regular-season champion East Valley en route to a third-place finish in the 2A state tournament.

Smith said they brought most of their starters from that team back, and will relay a lot on the scoring of junior guard and University of Idaho commit Ashlyn Wallace. The key to victory for Cheney will not be trying to contain her, but rather letting her score her average while keeping her teammates from having career nights from the field.

Before that, Cheney opened the home portion of its schedule on Tuesday, Dec. 10, by hosting Post Falls of Idaho’s 5A Inland Empire League. Smith said she didn’t know what to expect from the 1-1 Trojans, but wanted her team to go out and focus more on itself than who they were facing in non-league play.

“Our goal is to get better each time out on the court,” she said.

John McCallum can be reached at jmac@cheneyfreepress.com.