Park Center Holiday Basketball Showcase - Elk River vs Park Center 12-28-16

The nightcap over at Park Center High School on this Wednesday evening was one that many a basketball connoisseur would drool over - especially if you were a follower of Northwest Suburban Conference Girl's Basketball like I am.  The match-up between powerhouse Elk River; a squad that has been on the cusp of winning the Section 8AAAA title and host Park Center that has been to the State Tournament the last three seasons and winning two state titles in Class AAA before being shoved up to Class AAAA a year ago.  This would be my first good look at the Elks and I would come away being quite impressed.

Elk River came out of the gates on fire; particularly senior guard Gabi Haack as she engineered a 9-0 Elk lead.  An offensive rebound and putback at the 17:30 mark got things started and then a lay-up in transition that drew a foul and sent the future Bradley Brave to the charity stripe for the obligatory free throw at the 17:13 mark made it a 5-0 game.  A Gabi Haack lay-up at the 16:22 mark pushed the lead to 7-0 and a concerned Pirate Head Coach Chris VanderHyde called a thirty-second timeout in hopes of getting his squad out of the doldrums.  Still, Gabi Haack capped this opening run at the 15:18 mark with an offensive rebound and putback that made it 9-0 before Park Center could shake off the cobwebs.  But the Pirates would not only shake them off but also put on the jets and embark on their own 9-0 blitz.  Speedy junior guard Sommer Blakemore started the run with her "3" from the left corner at the 14:58 mark and a lay-up by senior sharp-shooting guard Ann Simonet at the 14:01 mark trimmed the Elks lead down to 9-5.  A Simonet drive along the left baseline and finish at the 13:32 mark and a lay-up by diminutive senior point guard Danielle Schaub at the 12:58 mark knotted the game at 9-all and Elk River Head Coach Jeremy Digiovanni now felt compelled to take a timeout of his own.

Park Center seemed to have found its groove on both ends of the floor, however, and the Pirates exploded on a 12-4 run.  Lanky senior post Mikayla Hayes got inside for a tough hook shot at the 12:33 mark and a short jumper by Schaub at the 10:03 mark had Park Center up 13-11.  A Simonet lay-up at the 9:18 mark maintained that two-point edge at 15-13 and two Schaub three-point bombs - one from the left wing area with 8:37 left and another from the right wing area with 7:57 left - now had the Pirates up 21-13 and a worried Digiovanni was forced to take a match to another timeout. That stoppage in play seemed to revive Elk River as they responded with an 8-0 push to tie the game again.  Two three-point bombs by strong senior forward Sidney Wentland - one from the top of the key with 7:40 left and another from the right corner with 7:16 left - closed the gap to two points at 21-19 and two charity stripe shots by senior guard Ava Kramer had the game tied at 21 with 6:41 left in the first half.  The wild roller-coaster rides by both teams seemed to settle down going down the home stretch before the half as each side seemed content to trade jabs at every available opportunity. A Blakemore "3" from the right top area with 6:04 left had Park Center up again 24-21 but that was met and matched by a "3" from the left wing area with 4:54 left by Elk senior guard Danielle Lachmiller.  The Pirates tried to open up some more space as a turnaround jumper by Hayes with 4:19 left and a Blakemore "3" from the top of the key with 3:35 left had Park Center up 29-24 but again the resilient Elks battled back.  Lachmiller unleashed another "3" - this one from the left corner with 3:22 left and a Kramer score in the paint with 2:39 left had things deadlocked once again at 29 a piece.  The Pirates would get a bit of an edge right before the halftime buzzer as a score in the paint by Hayes with 2:24 left and a Simonet lay-up with 1:44 left had Park Center up 33-31.  Hayes would snare an offensive rebound for a putback with 1:02 left and one Schaub freebie with :44.4 left made it 36-31 but Elk River would get one last score before the halftime recess as Gabi Haack muscled her way into the paint for a score that trimmed the Pirate lead to 36-33.

The fact that the Elks were able to withstand two serious runs by their opponent on the road likely gave them a ton of confidence going into the second half and a 7-0 Elk River run to begin the second half was indicative of that.  After both sides fired blanks in the first two minutes of the second half, Wentland connected with a lay-up in transition that drew a foul in the process and her free throw at the 15:55 mark had things tied up again at 36 a piece.  Two Gabi Haack free throws at the 14:43 mark and a Gabi Haack score in the paint at the 13:54 mark had the Elks up 40-36 before Park Center awoke from their brief slumber.  A short jumper in the lane by Hayes at the 13:26 mark and a Simonet lay-up in transition at the 13:05 mark had this one tied again at 40-all.  Elk River would build a four-point advantage again on a Kramer lay-up at the 12:55 mark and two Wentland free throws at the 11:37 mark and the Elks would maintain that four-point edge over the next minute and a half.

Park Center could have arguably been in between a rock and a hard place right then and there but the resilient Pirates managed to battle back.  Two Hayes free throws at the 9:52 mark and a Hayes score in the paint at the 9:24 mark had the game tied (once again) at 48.  Elk River would grab a couple of two point leads over the next two minutes but, trailing 52-50, Park Center's Simonet drained a "3" from the left corner with 7:11 left for a 53-52 Pirate lead and an offensive rebound and putback by Hayes with 6:29 left increased that lead to 55-52.  Although the Elks would keep things within one possession over the next few possessions and, in fact, would forge a 56-all deadlock on a pull-up jumper in the lane with 5:49 left, it appeared that Park Center was ever so slowly grabbing control of things.  A drive along the left baseline and finish by Schaub with 5:23 left and a Hayes jumper from near the free throw line with 4:54 left had the Pirates up by two at 60-58 and then a Blakemore three-point bomb from the right wing area with 4:25 left gave Park Center a five-point cushion at 63-58 and, presumably anyway, in position to put their collective hands around Elk River's windpipe for the final kill.  But just when it appeared the Pirates were in position to do just that, an experienced and senior-laden Elk team hunkered down and thwarted near-disaster.  A Haack lay-up in transition with 4:09 left had Elk River back to within one possession trailing 63-60 and fellow senior guard Kelsie Cox; quiet from a scoring standpoint, got into the books with her lay-up with 3:36 left that trimmed Park Center's lead down to a scant point at 63-62.  A Hayes score in the paint with 3:14 left got the Pirate lead back up to 65-62 but Wentland found her touch from behind the arc at the top of the key with 2:53 left to forge a 65-all deadlock and any momentum that Park Center may have had up to that point seemingly flew out the window right then and there into the cold night.  A Kelsie Cox lay-up with 2:09 left put the Elks back on top 67-65 and the Pirates' VanderHyde called a timeout to try and keep this one from slipping away.  Sophomore guard Meghan DuBois was fouled with :58.1 left and got one free throw to go down that cut the Elk River lead down to one at 67-66.  The Elks, desperately clinging to a one-point lead, got the ball into Gabi Haack's hands and she was fouled with :39.5 left but could only get the back-end attempt to go down for a 68-66 Elk River lead.  Still plenty of time for the Pirates to get this game deadlocked once again but on their ensuing possession, Park Center suffered a rare miscue that resulted in a turnover.  The Elks' Lachmiller was fouled with :31 left but could only get the back-end attempt to go down for a 69-66 Elk River lead.  Still time for the Pirates to get a good look for a three-point shot and VanderHyde called a timeout with :18.3 left. However, when Park Center tried to inbound the ball after the timeout, a stingy Elk defense prevented anyone from getting open and the Pirates turned the ball over again on a five-second call.  Gabi Haack was immediately fouled with :16.9 left by Schaub who was sent to the bench with her fifth and final foul.  Again, Haack could only get one of the free throw attempts to go down for a 70-66 lead so there was still a sliver of a chance left for Park Center.  But the Pirates were foiled on their ensuing possession and Elk River's Kelsie Cox got one free throw to go down with :10.6 left as the Elks claimed a huge and precious 71-66 road victory.

After having had to play second fiddle to Section 8 rival STMA for the last few seasons, Elk River finally looks primed to shed its role of perennial bridesmaid and finally get over the hump; much the same way Park Center did three seasons ago when they finally downed nemesis DeLaSalle in their section final.  Of course, it's only late December and a lot can happen between now and March but if the Elks stay healthy, this is a team that can not only win the incredibly tough Northwest Suburban Conference but can also make a lot of noise on the big stage.  The pieces and experience are there. Without question, Gabi Haack is one of the top players in the state and the fact that she can not only be a threat from behind the arc but can also use her strong 5'9" frame to get into the paint to do the dirty work down low makes life a heck of a lot easier for teammates such as Wentland, Lachmiller and Kelsie Cox who are no slouches in their own right.  It'll be exciting to see what this group does and I definitely want to catch them in action again.  Meanwhile for Park Center, yet another gut-wrenching loss.  A game in which they had momentum and had themselves in position to win - and yet couldn't close the deal when it counted.  As I said earlier, it's only late December and there's plenty of time to right the ship.  It's the little things that seem to be costing this squad.  A missed lay-up here, a missed "bunny" there.  A few silly errors on defense or a turnover.  And you look at this game and the loss to East Ridge and, to an extent, the loss to Hopkins and you can't help but wonder if these losses get into the players collective minds a bit.  It's not the best analogy but, as a tennis player, I've had my share of losses where I was up a break or two in the third set only to have things get away from me.  And when it happens to you more than once in a short period of time, it's there in the back of your mind whether you're willing to admit it or not.  So it's entirely possible that there may be some mental hurdles that the Pirates have to overcome as well.  I think this team is too talented and too well-coached that they go into a complete funk but they've got to find some answers to some things before they dive head-first into Northwest Suburban Conference play after the first of the year.