CHANUTE — Blitzing ahead in the third quarter, the Chanute Blue Comets girls dispatched the Labette County Grizzlies, 56-32, on Friday night.
Chanute led narrowly, 22-21, at halftime before the Blue Comets outscored the Grizzlies, 19- 4, in the third stanza.
“The biggest adjustment was being smarter about when and where we wanted to trap,” Chanute head coach Dustin Fox said. “We were playing hard but putting ourselves in some bad spots. In the second half, we did a better job of being disciplined. That caused them some problems.”
Labette County head coach Brianna Volmer also cited Chanute’s defense for igniting the Blue Comets’ run.
“They figured out their matchup zone,” Volmer said. “We had a good gameplan coming in, but it got away from us. We let the tables flip too quickly. In a close league game in February, you have to be locked in for four quarters. That’s been the thorn in our side. We have to finish more games.”
Grace Lueberring and Kate Uhner both led Chanute with 13 points. Lueberring’s performance included zero turnovers, one game removed from committing 11 in a loss to Fort Scott.
“She’s a special kid. For a freshman to have the game last time she went out, she learned from it,” Fox said. “She made a lot of good things happen tonight. That shows a lot of maturity.”
Kaylin McCoy led Labette County with 13 points on 6-of-7 shooting.
“She’s finding the game and letting it come to her,” Volmer said. “She’s settling down and learning how to be a big body in the paint. She played well.”
Chanute’s defense forced 32 turnovers, allowing the Blue Comets to overcome a sluggish start.
“Early, we were pretty passive against their zone,” Fox said. “We settled for shots and weren’t making them. That can get ugly pretty quickly. Luckily, we were only down 7-0 after six minutes. It could’ve been a lot worse. We have to avoid those stretches. But we stayed in it defensively.”
Friday’s loss capped a deflating week for the Grizzlies, who also lost to rival Parsons on Tuesday.
“This has been a gym that’s been a big turning moment for us,” Volmer said. “We have to keep trying to get better every day. We’ve got to focus on the moments we’re in and not wish it was the weekend. We’ve got to slow down. We can’t try to win a game. We have to win the next possession. The key moving forward is setting little goals and achieving them.”
Up next
Chanute heads to Pittsburg on Tuesday.
“It’s so cliche, but it’s one game at a time,” Fox said. “Anything other than that, it’s a disservice to the kids. We got this one, now we’ll focus on Pittsburg.”
Labette County hosts Fort Scott in a sub-state championship rematch on Tuesday.
“We know what they bring to the table,” Volmer said. “They’re finding their stride right now. It’ll be a tough matchup. But we want Labette County to be a tough place to play.”
