Wolves make statement with home win over T-Birds

ELKHORN — The three-time defending Class B Girls Basketball State Champions Elkhorn North looked poised not only to defend its title, but make a case as the top team in the state — regardless of class — with a 67-52 victory over Class A powerhouse Bellevue West Tuesday.

‍

“I am super proud of our girls,” Elkhorn North coach Ann Prince stated. “I thought we really executed well and played well. We got off to a great start and then there was a little bit of a lull, but I liked the way we stepped up at the end to seal the deal. We followed the scouting report and stuck to the plan defensively. Offensively we executed very well for the most part.”

‍

‍

The Wolves pounced on Bellevue West with an early shooting flurry. Back-to-back Britt Prince 3-pointers put Elkhorn North ahead 6-0. A 7-point spurt by Prince to end the quarter gave the Wolves a 21-11 lead, as the senior guard netted 18 points in the first eight minutes of play.

‍

“It is always nice to get off to a good start,” coach Prince commented. “They changed from man-to-man defense to a triangle and two, so we had to adjust. I liked the way we moved and shared the ball. We had contributions from everyone on the floor.”

‍

Bellevue West and Elkhorn North each tallied 17 points in the second, as the black and blue held a 38-28 edge at the break.

‍

‍

Following a McKenna Murphy trey to open the third quarter, the Thunderbirds came roaring back with a 17-10 run to cut the deficit to 51-45 heading into the final stanza.

‍

Elkhorn North responded by ending the game on a 16-7 run to cruise to its fourth win of the season.

‍

“Our maturity showed there,” coach Prince noted. “You can’t let good teams back in games because momentum can shift. We talked about the importance of rebounding and continuing to follow the plan defensively and execute on offense. We were finishing and executed well.”

‍

Prince led the way with a game-high 35 points. Sydney Stodden netted 14 points — 6 of those 14 coming in the third quarter — Murphy recorded 11 points, Reese Booth notched 6 points and Kara Kudlacz added 1 point.

‍

‍

“Sydney Stodden had a great game,” coach Prince added. “She made a lot of jumpers, got to the rim well and played great defense. I couldn’t be more proud of her. That is probably her best all around game I have seen her play. She is highly capable of it and we are so proud of her.” 

‍

Elkhorn North (4-0) hosts Hastings Friday at 5:30 p.m. before competing in the Eastern Midlands Conference Tournament starting Dec. 22 and the championship game set for Dec. 30 at 4 p.m. at Lincoln Northwest.

‍

“It’s great to be challenged by a really good team,” coach Prince concluded. “We are going to keep growing and look at the things we need to improve on. We’ll watch the film and continue to get better. You have to be able to execute against a variety of defenses and we know that. We’re going to see man, we’re going to the junk defense and we’re going to see zone. Being able to execute no matter what they throw at you is huge. Then following the scouting report defensively is huge for us. We just have to keep playing hard and play to our standard, no matter the opponent.”