Clever finally found the pace it wanted. Spokane, meanwhile, struggled to find the bottom of the net.
Clever’s transition offense, aided by a cold-shooting Spokane team, made all the difference Tuesday night as the Blue Jays dominated after the first quarter to win 53-35 at home in an SWCL matchup.
After a slow start, Clever set the tone – fast, fast, fast – and never looked back. Clever outscored Spokane 22-7 in the second quarter then 11-4 in the third.
“We were letting (Spokane) dictate how we played offensively and we don’t play well when that happens,” said Clever coach Dan Jones. ““When we picked up the offensive tempo and threw the press on (Spokane), we picked up the defensive tempo too.”
Led by a game-high 20 points from Hannah Maples, Clever doubled up Spokane on total field goals made, 18-9. Thanks to steady ball pressure and sound defense in the half-court and full-court by Clever, Spokane’s first field goal of the second half didn’t come until midway through the fourth quarter.
Clever guards Maples and freshman Harper Little keyed Clever’s on-ball pressure throughout the game.
“Hannah and Harper, they can pretty much harass anyone in the area,” Jones said.
Spokane was hampered by foul trouble and a second-quarter injury to guard Casey Wallace. While attempting the front end of a one-and-one, Wallace suffered a knee injury when an opposing player went to box her out.
Spokane was within single digits at the time of the injury, but when Wallace returned in the second half, Clever had a sizable lead and the Owls never got going on offense.
“That (injury) took us out of rhythm and then it was hard to get back into rhythm with all the fouls being called,” said Spokane coach Doug Hepler. “It was hard to find a rhythm of what to do and what not to do. At the end of the day, you have to hand it to (Clever). They did a good job of attacking us. They have a lot of weapons that stepped up tonight.”
Maples swished a running 3-pointer from the right wing at the buzzer to give Clever a 27-16 halftime lead. After leading 9-5 at the end of the first quarter, Spokane made just two field goals in the second quarter then zero in the third.
“We’ve had a few games like this where we struggle to find the bucket,” Hepler said. “We’ve got to get in the gym and get a little more shooting. And again, we’ve gotta get tougher and get rebounds. It’s just a combination of a lot of things, you can’t point at one thing. We need to find our rhythm again and get to where we’re finding the bottom of the net as opposed to that iron.”
Spokane fell to 15-5 overall and 2-2 in the SWCL standings. The Owls host Exeter on Thursday.
Clever improved to 12-6 overall and 2-0 in league play. The Blue Jays travel to Cassville on Thursday.
Clever 53, Spokane 35
Spokane 9 7 4 15 — 35
Clever 5 22 11 15 — 53
Spokane – Meghan Robertson 10, Casey Wallace 7, Rachelle McMurray 7, Taylor Riott 7, Kaylee Amritage 3, Sabrina Lator 1
Clever – Hannah Maples 20, Harper Little 9, Madison Newman 8, Taylor Menzies 5, Ashten Graff 4, Abi Menzies 4, Tessa Newman 3,
