Two amazing scoring streaks by the Triton College women's basketball team wiped out an early Malcolm X College lead in a 72-49 semi-final win Wednesday, March 5, as the Trojans booked a Region 4 Division I championship game duel against Olive-Harvey College.
Seeking to lengthen their 11-game winning streak, the 27-4 Trojans will play the title game at 5 p.m. Saturday, March 8, at the Jorndt Athletic Complex gymnasium.
Triton's players will eagerly count down the less-than-72 hours until their date with 31-1 Olive-Harvey as the two teams did not play one another in the regular season.
"I've been waiting for this all season," said guard
Aliana Brown.
A repeat of the efficiency that sealed the Malcolm X win likely will be welcomed.
After the Hawks took an 18-8 late first-quarter lead that expanded to 24-11 early in the second, the Trojans blitzed the visitors with a 16-0 run, taking the lead, before settling for a 29-29 halftime tie. Brown,
Jada Branch and
Jazzmine Smith parked the surge.
Triton did not cool off during the intermission break. The Trojans entertained the large crowd with an even greater 21-1 run in the first 5-plus minutes of the third quarter, finishing the period leading 55-38.
"That honestly came from us coming back in the second quarter. We had to turn it up defensively," sophomore center
Jordyn Coleman said of the third-quarter spree.
Mariah Phelps' three-pointer gave the Trojans a 60-41 lead with 7:30 to go in the fourth period before Triton hiked the lead to 25 points two minutes later to clinch the victory.
Triton was able to overwhelm Malcolm X without a vintage game from Coleman, who scored just eight points, nine under her game average. She also had a sub-par rebounding night with nine, three below her average.
But with the Hawks paying more attention on containing Coleman, that opened up the floor for others.
"That shows we have confidence," said Coleman. "I love to see them get baskets. That's great for us."
Fellow Trojan "big"
Lauryn Hunt stepped up with 14 points on 7-for-12 shooting.
"I was able to lock in and finish at the basket," Hunt said. "Our coach (
Drew Winston) told us with our ability we could outrun them down the court."
Smith led Triton with 16 points and five assists. Brown had 12 points and a game-high five steals. Branch had eight points and four assists.
With an average night, Coleman could have reached 1,000 points for her career. She is nine points short of the milestone achieved by only four other players in Triton history. Coleman also has 393 career rebounds. The school record is 429.
Saturday's championship will stream live on the
Triton College Athletic HUDL page. Marshall Harris, co-host of "Bernstein & Harris" on 670 The Score will call the game and will be joined by special guest analyst, Delwyn Jones, the head women's basketball coach at Moraine Valley Community College.
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(Story by tritonathletics.com contributor George Castle) Â
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