Archbishop Murphy’s girls basketball team started the New Year off right.
Three Wildcats scored in double figures as Archbishop Murphy knocked off Sultan 63-51 in a Cascade Conference game Jan. 8 at Archbishop Murphy High School.
The Wildcats led only 13-11 after the first quarter but outscored the Turks 14-7 in the second.
“We played methodically,” said Archbishop Murphy coach John Barhanovich. “We did we what needed to do.”
Savannah Fletcher scored a game-high 17 points as the Wildcats improved to 2-0 in the league and 6-2 overall. Teammates Shelby Lyman scored 15 points and Beth Carlson in her first game of the season added 12. Carlson, a freshman, was sidelined with back problems.
“We got her into the flow of the game,” Barhanovich said. “She’s got lot of potential. … She’s going to help us as we go through the season.”
Sultan had plenty of good looks at the basket in the first quarter. The Wildcats increased the defensive pressure in the subsequent quarter.
“We got a hand up. We bothered their shooters a little more,” Barhanovich said.
On the offensive end, the Wildcats shared the ball well, which their coach likes to see.
“One of the keys with this team is that it doesn’t make a difference who’s the leading scorer,” Barhanovich said. “They don’t worry about who’s getting the points.”
Instead, the players are focused on setting their teammates up for an open shot, setting screens or making the extra pass, he added.
As the Wildcats head into games with Coupeville and Lakewood this week, Barhanovich said that the team is about where it should be at this point of the season.
Archbishop Murphy’s defense is improving and the offense is starting to get more in tune, Barhanovich said.
Carlson rotated with older sister Megan and Fletcher against Sultan. Barhanovich is contemplating the idea of having all three post players in the lineup at the same time. Fletcher is averaging about 10 rebounds a game and Barhanovich expects her to lead the league. “If we put the other two in together at the same time we’d dominate,” Barhanovich said. “Rebounds would be an advantage we’d have.”
The Wildcats’ offense is led by Lyman, Fletcher and Sam Pettinger, who are averaging 12, 12 and 11 points respectively. On any given night, two or three players are scoring in double figures.
“That would be the ultimate goal of every game – to be balanced,” Barhanovich said.
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