When you play a big basketball game at a tough gym like Oakley's, it's vital for a visiting team to get off to a good start. That's what the Carey School Panthers did Thursday.
Running the court well and getting a pair of 3-pointers from senior Amy Olsen, Carey jumped out to a 20-13 first-quarter lead over the Oakley Hornets and used tough defense in the third quarter to stay out in front. When the final buzzer sounded Carey (2-0) prevailed 55-52.
Carey coach Hollis Pincock said, "It's nice to get a win on the road down at Oakley."
It was an important early-season test between two teams expected to be contenders in their separate divisions—Carey in the Fourth District 1A Northside Conference and Oakley in the Southside. In fact, Oakley could win the Southside at the end.
That's because of Oakley's Jenna Peterson, who averaged 16 points per game during the Hornets' sixth-place State 1A run last winter. Peterson ended up with 31 points Thursday including 19 in the first half and 6-for-8 at the line in the fourth.
Carey coach Pincock had to come up with a plan to slow down Peterson after Oakley erased Carey's early lead and took a 32-31 halftime lead, mainly on Peterson's shoulders.
"Jenna Peterson is a strong player, but we did handle her in the third quarter," said Pincock about the period in which Carey outscored Oakley 12-4. "We ran a variation of the box-on-one with Peterson guarded by someone new each time down the floor. We traded off depending on where Peterson was."
Defensively, Carey concentrated on getting a hand out on every Oakley pass. The Panthers ended up with 17 steals—4 apiece by Whitney Peck and Jessica Royal, and 3 each by Brenna Silva and Amy Olsen.
It helped that Carey shot the ball very well at Oakley.
"We had one of our best shooting nights—48.8% from the field and 33% from 3-point range (3-for-9)," said Pincock. "We legitimately have six players who can score points."
Brenna Silva finished with a team-high 18 points and 11 rebounds. Amy Olsen added 10 points and 4 boards. Floor general Jessica Royal contributed 9 points and 9 assists. "Jessica does really well finding the open man," said Pincock.
Whitney Peck chipped in 5 points and 10 rebounds, Allison Shaffer added 6 points, Lacey Peterson 5 and Cassie Weaver 2. For Oakley, Peterson added 13 boards. Oakley (1-2) had beaten Northside Conference contender Richfield 42-41 at home two nights before, while Carey was a day removed from its season-opening 48-17 home win over Clark County.
Carey resumes action Tuesday, Nov. 29 at home in the 2005-06 Northside Conference opener against The Community School Cutthroats (1-0). That week, the Panthers have four games including a tough road contest at Richfield Dec. 1 and the Carey Holiday Tournament Dec. 2-3.
