Lockard double-double leads Lycoming to blowout
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It didn't matter where Wilkes was trying to take shots from in the third quarter, be it just outside the arc, in the paint, or even underneath the basket. Any time Wilkes looked like it had a chance to cut the deficit, Lycoming's defensive pressure was enough to force the shot just off its intended mark.
Wilkes wasn't able to sink a basket at all in the third quarter, and it was a credit to Lycoming's defense.
During halftime, Lycoming coach Christen Ditzler and her staff talked to the players about their defensive intensity, and there's no doubt the players listened.
The Warriors outscored Wilkes in that pivotal third quarter, 18-1, and shifted the momentum in a 70-49 MAC Freedom matchup at Lamade Gymnasium on Wednesday night.
"At halftime we discussed picking up our defensive intensity, being more disciplined defensively, getting in the passing lanes, eliminating our fouls, moving our feet and that fueled our offense for us," Ditzler said. "That was stated clearly at the half."
By the time Wilkes scored a basket in the third quarter, the Warriors had already built up a double-digit lead. A free throw by Julianna Askins made it a 41-28 deficit for Wilkes, but the Warriors would go ahead by 19 points entering the fourth quarter.
"I think it just comes down to us working a lot better and really being able to anticipate what they were going to do and closing out on them," Lycoming's Emily Lockard said. "It was a good effort."
Lockard proved to be a force all night against the Colonels. She had a 10-point, 14-rebound double-double. In addition to Lockard, Meghan Dufner was key for the Warriors. The freshman helped Lycoming's offense spark in the third quarter. Lycoming used a 12-0 run in the third quarter to go from a narrow two-point lead to going ahead 45-28.
In the third alone, Dufner scored 11 of her 17 points.
"She's a real hustler. Like if she makes a mistake, she gets down there and she really makes them pay for it and gets them back," Lockard said. "She's terrific and I can't wait to play with her for the rest of my career here."
"They were really an excellent in-out combination," Ditzler said of Lockard and Dufner. "I thought Meghan really got some nice break opportunities off of her defense and Emily, one of things also we discussed was getting the ball inside and getting her touches and she did a really nice job."
The game started out as a back-and-forth contest, a completely different game than it turned out in the second half.
Wilkes and Lycoming exchanged leads four times in the first two quarters and nine times were tied. Wilkes built up a four-point lead with 2:10 to play in the first quarter thanks to a basket by Alexa Jones, but Lycoming never let Wilkes lead by more than that.
Lycoming took a 29-25 lead with 14 seconds in the second quarter off a 3-pointer by Diana Rantz, but the Colonels would quickly score with just a second to play to make it a 29-27 game going into the half.
That would be the last time the game was close, however, as Lycoming's offense exploded in the second half. Lycoming led by as many as 26 points twice.
"It shifted our momentum on the court and our bench really let up," Lockard said of the team's 12-0 run in the third. "We're a team that feeds off our bench's energy, so that really helped pick us up."
The win on Wednesday night snapped a three-game skid and is Lycoming's first win since a 50-45 victory against King's on Dec. 18. And Wednesday's 70-point performance was the most points Lycoming's scored this year.
"When the ball goes in the basket, you gain confidence, things come easier and certainly that really, really gave us the momentum we needed," Ditzler said. "We haven't put this many points up on the board all season, so this was a really nice breakout game for us."
Wellsboro graduate Cathryn Brought helped make an impact a swell, grabbing 12 rebounds — second behind only Lockard's 14 — scoring six points, dishing out three assists and having a steal.
Rantz ended with nine for Lycoming. Wilkes was led by Askins (10) and Jones (9).
With the win, Lycoming is now 5-10 overall and 4-2 in the MAC Freedom, putting the Warriors within a game of DeSales and Stevens at the top of the league.
"The league is so tough from top to bottom and so any time we can protect our home floor and get win on home floor and steal one or two on the road, that's what we're after," Ditzler said. "Right now there's quite a few of us that are vying for that fifth playoff spot, so this is a really big win for us."
Being a big victory is something Lockard echoed.
"It's pretty big for us. All of these games are super important to us just to get to end of season and have a good position," Lockard said. "Every league game we go into our goal is we need to win this and earn this win."
Lycoming 70, Wilkes 49
WILKES (4-9, 2-4 MAC Freedom)
Jordyn Jennings 1-13 2-2 4; Alexa JOnes 2-7 4-4 9; Julianna Askins 1-10 7-12 10; Brianna HOrton 3-17 0-0 8; Kendra Smith 2-4 2-2 6; Isabella McKeefery 2-5 2-2 6; Emma Stout 1-4 4-6 6; Breanna Kijek 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 12-62 21-28 49.
LYCOMING (5-10, 4-2 MAC Freedom)
Emily Lockard 5-11 0-1 10; Emily Zoscin 1-4 2-5 4; Cathryn Brought 3-11 0-0 6; Allison Butler 1-7 0-0 2; Meghan Dufner 7-13 3-3 17; Mia Rudalavage 2-4 0-0 4; Kenzie Reed 2-5 1-2 5; Diana Rantz 3-6 1-2 9; Jessica Shaver 1-5 1-2 3; Jillian Pumputis 0-5 0-0 0; Colby White 2-4 0-0 4; Francine Bacon 0-4 1-2 1; Sophie Pelton 1-2 0-2 2; Alexa BAldwin 1-1 0-1 3; Sarah Lanphear 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 29-82 9-20 70.
Wilkes 14 13 1 21 — 49
Lycoming 14 15 18 23 — 70
3-point goals: Wilkes 4-24 (Horton 2-9, Askins 1-6, Jones 1-3, Jennings 0-6), Lycoming 3-21 (Rantz 2-5, Baldwin 1-1, Zoscin 0-1, Pumputis 0-2, Dufner 0-4, Brought 0-8). Fouled out: Wilkes-none; Lycoming-none. Rebounds: Wilkes 74 (Lockard 14, Brought 12). Assists: Wilkes 4 (Jones 2), Lycoming 18 (Rudalavage 5). Technical fouls: Wilkes-none; Lycoming-none. Total fouls: Wilkes 20, Lycoming 26.