The honored alumni from Triton's 50 years of women's basketball were treated to a workmanlike 70-59 victory over archrival Highland Community College on Saturday, February 3, at the Jordnt Athletic Complex gymnasium.
The players from as far back as 1974 exulted in the Trojans' ninth straight win to boost their record to 17-6. But they also were basketball-wise to look beyond those base numbers. The old-timers, such as they are, realized none of their teams likely had the rebounding prowess of the 2023-24 Trojans.
In leading from wire to wire, Triton not only had a 47-34 overall rebounding edge, but also snared second and more shot attempts with a vengeance. The Trojans corraled 17 offensive rebounds to the smaller Cougars' four.
Jordyn Coleman's emergence as one of Region 4's top "bigs" is leading the "guardians of the glass" concept. Now ranking 10th nationally in rebounds per game, Coleman boosted her 12.1 per game average with 18 against Highland, complementing a 21-point output that tied
Trinity Barnes for team high production.
Fellow "big"
Lauryn Hunt, often teamed with Coleman as Trojan towers of power, added 10 rebounds of her own. She averages 8.5 rebounds on the team, second to Coleman. Only a handful of Trojans teams of the last half-century could boast of such glass-cleaning ability.
"Getting inside and getting good position was big today because they went with a small lineup where they were trying to run the floor," said Coleman.
When she sees a smaller defender in the post, Coleman envisions a delectable feast. "They try ticky-tack fouls," she said.
Coleman's development as a 1-A scoring complement to guard Barnes promises continued good results for the Trojans. Her output against the Cougars was her sixth game with 20 or more points this season. Her high was 26 against Elmhurst University's junior varsity on January 24.
Barnes is happy she'll get extra looks at the basket if she misses thanks to Coleman and Hunt.
"The 'bigs' we have are amazing. They are going to box out," she said.
Coleman and Hunt are also helping Barnes climb in both national stats and the Triton record book.Â
Ranked sixth in the nation in scoring with 20 per game, Barnes passed 900 career points in the victory. She is eighth all-time in Triton scoring. Barnes had three 31-point performances in the six games prior to the Highland victory.
The Trojans did not have to sweat it out through the fourth quarter. Coleman had a double-double at halftime. Highland stuck with Triton in the first half, but stalled in the third quarter, scoring just 11 points. Triton led by as much as 15 before settling for the final score.
Triton has not lost since a 57-54 setback at Sauk Valley on December 14. Barnes believes the team was helped by the holiday break that soon ensued.
"We were practicing while other teams did not," she said. "I think we're in pretty good shape."
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(Story by tritonathletics.com contributor George Castle)
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