Park Center Holiday Showcase - Minnetonka vs Park Center 12-29-17

A busy day with a meeting on the south side of town kept me from attending the afternoon games at Park Center Gymnasium but I was determined to get over there for the nightcap on the second day which featured Minnetonka out of the Lake Conference going up against host Park Center from the Northwest Suburban Conference.  The Skippers looked strong in their big win over Simley on Thursday while the Pirates were hoping to rebound (both literally and figuratively) from the disappointing loss the previous night against Cretin-Derham Hall.  Though Minnetonka had been struggling some coming out of the gate this year, this is a big, long and athletic team that can rebound and play defense and the Pirates could ill-afford to take this team lightly.

Indeed, the Skippers got off to a decent start in this one as junior guard Blake Greer's "3" from the left corner at the 17:44 mark drew first blood and two free throws by graceful junior guard Megan Walker at the 16:24 mark had Minnetonka up 5-2.  The Skippers also initially came out in a 2-3 zone defense as well but one of the best ways to kill a zone defense is with three-point shooting.  Enter Pirate senior point guard Sommer Blakemore who can drop NBA-range bombs.  Her first bomb from the top of the key at the 16:00 mark knotted the contest a five a piece and a drive and finish by freshman guard/forward Adalia McKenzie had things tied up at 7-all which was the start of an 8-0 Park Center push.  Blakemore made a hard drive into traffic at the 15:01 mark for a finish that drew a foul and resulted in an "and one" and a "3" from the right wing area by slender senior guard Meghan DuBois at the 14:27 mark had the Pirates up 13-7.  Minnetonka would recover, however, as junior guard Natalie Erhard dropped two free throws at the 13:09 mark and senior reserve forward Liv O'Brien did the same a bit later at the 12:54 mark that cut the deficit down to two points at 13-11.  McKenzie would add to Park Center's lead with her jumper in the lane off the glass at the 11:54 mark but it was here that the Skippers went on a 13-0 romp.  Greer 's drive and finish at the 11:16 mark started the run and a jumper from the free throw line by Walker at the 10:42 mark tied the contest at 15-all.  A score in the paint by strong senior post Zoe Hardwick at the 9:58 mark pushed Minnetonka out in front 17-15 and then it was Greer banging home a "3" from the left wing area at the 9:22 mark to get the lead to 20-15.  Junior reserve forward Erin Shoemaker knocked down a jumper from the right corner just inside the arc with 7:49 left and when senior forward Kayla Mershon got into the paint for a score with 7:13 left to give the Skippers a nine-point 24-15 lead, Park Center Head Coach Barb Metcalf had no choice but to take a match to a timeout.

The Pirates were able to recover momentarily from this Minnetonka onslaught as DuBois uncorked a "3" from the left corner at the 6:32 mark and another "3" from the left top area by sophomore reserve guard Aaliyah Ragulen helped Park Center reduce the deficit down to five points at 26-21.  But some of the same boxing out/rebounding issues that have been plaguing this young Pirate team in the last two games flared up again and this allowed Minnetonka to gradually increase its lead again.  A Walker lay-up with 4:54 left and a score in the paint by Mershon with 4:20 left quickly had the Skippers lead back up to nine points again at 30-21.  Just as she had on Thursday, Erhard came on strong down the home stretch of the first half in this one as well for Minnetonka.  She first snared an offensive rebound for a putback of her own miss with 3:48 left and then connected with a turnaround jumper in the lane with 2:57 left to give the Skippers a double-digit advantage at 34-23.  A Hardwick lay-up with 2:15 left maintained the eleven-point lead for Minnetonka at 36-25 before the Pirates were able to shave some of the fat off the deficit before the halftime buzzer.  One free throw by sophomore guard Lauren Frost with 2:07 left and two more by fellow sophomore reserve guard Kayla Cox with :59.7 left allowed Park Center to get back into single-digit range again trailing 36-28 at intermission.

The Skippers wasted little time growing their lead back to double digits in the early moments of the second half thanks primarily to Walker as her jumper from the right wing area at the 17:24 mark along with a lay-up in transition at the 16:17 mark that drew a foul and resulted in an "and one" now had Minnetonka up 42-30.  A Hardwick offensive rebound for a putback at the 15:00 mark maintained the twelve-point for the Skippers edge at 44-32 and there appeared to be little hope amongst the home crowd that Park Center could possibly find its way back.  But, just like the previous night, the Pirates would explode on offense and get this one close again when you least expected it.  Blakemore's hard drive into the lane and finish that drew a foul and resulted in an "and one" at the 14:46 mark sparked an 11-0 Park Center run.  McKenzie connected on a lay-up in transition at the 14:27 mark and when Frost whizzed from coast-to-coast for a lay-up that cut the Skipper lead down to 44-39 at the 13:54 mark, Minnetonka Head Coach Leah Dasovich knew full and well that a stoppage in play was warranted and she called a thirty-second timeout to try and get her team calmed down.  Still, the Pirates would bring things back to one scintillating point - just as they had on Thursday night.  Frost snared an offensive rebound for a putback at the 13:17 mark and then DuBois connected on a lay-up at the 12:48 mark that cut the Skipper lead down to 44-43 and there was certainly no reason to think that the Pirates; with all this time ahead of them, couldn't regain the advantage. 

But again, just when the Pirates were on the cusp of taking this game over, this one managed to slip through their fingers as well as Minnetonka slowly but surely regained control.  A Mershon lay-up that drew a foul at the 12:23 mark along with the obligatory free throw was the start of a 7-0 Skipper push that not only provided more breathing space but also seemed to take a lot of the wind out of Park Center's sail.  Mershon would sink two more free throws after getting fouled at the 11:53 mark and a drive into the lane and a pretty one-handed finish by Erhard at the 9:25 mark got 'Tonka's lead back to eight at 51-43.  The Pirates were able to cut the deficit back down to five points on a "3" by Ragulen from the right corner with 8:40 left but they could never get any consistent run going while there was still plenty of time.  As such, Minnetonka was able to pad its cushion a bit more as Erhard connected with a lay-up with 7:53 left and an offensive rebound and putback by willowy freshman reserve forward Katie Leisen with 7:07 left had the Skippers back up by nine at 55-46.  Complicating Park Center's problem even more was that the Skippers got into the bonus with 6:51 left and one Greer freebie with 6:51 left still had Minnetonka up by eight at 56-48 and now it would be a real battle for the Pirates to try and get this one really close again.  As a result, the Skippers made every effort to try and make drives into the lane in hopes of drawing a foul.  Walker dropped two free throws after getting fouled with 6:06 left and an offensive rebound for a putback by Mershon with 5:17 left again had Minnetonka in decent shape up by nine at 60-51.  A Walker score in the paint with 4:11 left maintained that nine-point edge at 64-53 before the Pirates could attempt one more comeback bid.  Two Blakemore free throws after she was fouled in transition with 3:40 left and a Blakemore "3" from the left top area with 3:09 left cut the deficit down to six points at 64-58.  DuBois added to the late-game heroics with a lay-up with 2:06 left and a steal and lay-up the other way with 1:52 left that kept the flicker of hope going for Park Center down 68-62.  Then Blakemore drained yet another one of her NBA-range three-point bombs - this one coming from the right wing area with :34 left - that cut the Skippers lead down to four at 69-65 and the Pirates' Metcalf called for a thirty-second timeout in hopes of cooking up a miracle.  When McKenzie was able to snare a steal in the backcourt and get a lay-up out of it with :26 left, Park Center was now only down two at 69-67 and perhaps now panic might set in on the Skippers.  The Pirates were desperately looking for a stop but the big controversy of the game happened on the ensuing Minnetonka possession as O'Brien raced in for a lay-up attempt with :14.8 left and was fouled hard by Park Center's Cox as both players went to the floor after the collision.  After some debate by the officials, it was ruled that Cox's foul was intentional and although O'Brien was unable to connect on either free throw attempt, the Skippers got the ball back and Mershon was fouled with :07.4 left and she knocked down perhaps the biggest free throws of the game that upped Minnetonka's lead to 71-67.  The Pirates unleashed one last-gasp as Blakemore drained still another NBA-range three-point bomb from the right top area with :02 left but it was still not enough as the Skippers escaped with a wild 71-70 victory.

Unrest and disappointment seemed to reign on the Park Center side afterward as the controversial decision by the officials to call Cox's foul intentional and if Minnetonka's Walker might have actually drawn her fifth foul that was inadvertently overlooked that allowed her to stay in the game.  I personally did not see the collision between Cox and O'Brien as I was furiously writing in my notebook and didn't look up until the whistle blew and the crowd erupted.  I very much doubt that Cox intentionally fouled O'Brien and the cursory questions I asked afterward seemed to indicate that Cox was strictly going for the ball so I'm more than willing to give her the benefit of the doubt here.  Did Walker foul out?  Again, I don't know either as I wasn't keeping track of fouls (perhaps could have/should have done better here) and I had no reason not to trust the officials' actions.  In the end, the bottom line here is that the Pirates lost yet another close game that they could have and perhaps should have won.  And again, I point the finger to three main things:  Boxing out, rebounding and making free throws.  And while these latest setbacks aren't the end of the world for Park Center by any stretch, at some point they've got to get these issues figured out if they hope to make a serious bid not only for Northwest Suburban Conference honors but also in the Section 5AAAA playoffs as well.  On the other side, the Skippers are a much better team than their record indicates and Dasovich told me afterward that she likes to challenge her squad with a tough schedule early on in the season.  I asked her if she thought that her team may have begun to hit its stride.  "I hope so" Dasovich replied but even she knows that a lot of work lies ahead; particularly in the murderous Lake Conference that includes the likes of both Hopkins and Wayzata.