BROOKINGS – Bobcat head coach Mitch McLagan said coming into Friday night’s matchup that Sioux Falls Roosevelt has been playing better lately than its 4-15 record showed.
And he was right as the hot-shooting from downtown Rough Riders made Brookings earn its 60-51 nonconference win at Bob Jostad Gymnasium.
“We played really well – one thing that we talked about in practice, a team like Roosevelt, they shoot a ton of 3s and we talked about chasing them off the 3-point line and I didn’t think we did a very good job of that; we got screened too easily,” said McLagan. “We made some adjustments at halftime; some kids stepped up.
“Our ball movement offensively was phenomenal – that’s one of the best that our ball movement has been – last two games our ball movement’s been good and that’s led to open shots and we’re hitting them.”
Roosevelt made 52 percent of its shots from beyond the arc with a 13-of-25 performance, which included 8-for-10 in the first half. In the second half, the Riders went 5-of-13 on 3-pointers, while inside, they finished 5-for-28 for the game, for an overall total of 18-of-53 for 34 percent.
Junior guard Tatum Kooima led the Rough Rider charge as she went 8-of-9 on 3-point attempts to garner 24 points on the night.
But the visitors didn’t have an answer for the Bobcats’ inside-outside tandem of Johanna Miller and Michaela Jewett, who combined for 34 points.
Miller controlled the paint to the tune of 16 points, six rebounds and a block, while Jewett knocked down four treys on the way to another double-double of 18 points and 16 boards, to go along with five assists and a pair of blocked shots.
Along the way, Jewett passed the 1,000-point plateau with a 3-pointer from the corner with 3:23 left in the first quarter, becoming the first Bobcat since Amy Mickelson and Renae Sallquist – the Twin Towers – transcended that ceiling in 1985. In 2007, Liz Helsper finished with 966 career points.
Helping out were Alli Gordon and Ava Burns with nine points apiece as both dished out three dimes and Burns had three steals. Regan Weisbeck came off the bench to add five points while Carolyn Hieb chipped in with three points, five assists, five boards and two takeaways.
For the game, the Bobcats finished with 16 assists on 21 made baskets.
“That’s why this team is so enjoyable to coach – they share the basketball; they don’t care who’s scoring,” McLagan said. “These kids want to win – that’s what really fun about coaching them.”
Brookings led by as many as nine points, 17-8, in the first quarter before the Riders closed on a 9-1 run on three Kooima 3-pointers to pull within 18-17 at the break.
The Bobcats built their lead back to eight points – 33-25 – midway through the second on a Jewett trey as Hieb picked up the assist, but Kooima hit her fifth 3 of the half with 1:26 left to get Roosevelt within five at 35-30.
A Burns steal led to Weisbeck’s driving basket just before halftime to give Brookings a 37-30 lead at intermission.
Back-to-back 3-pointers by Gordon and Jewett sandwiched a Rider basket to open the second half and gave the ‘Cats’ their largest lead of the contest at 11 points, 43-32.
But the Riders hung in and came back to close to within four points – 48-44 – following a Hattie Giblin trey with 2:29 left in the frame.
Jewett answered with another 3 before Roosevelt’s Tariah Ambrose converted 1-of-2 from the line to make it 51-45 at the break.
Kooima sandwiched a pair of 3-pointers around another Jewett trey to make it a 54-51 contest at the 4:58 mark of the fourth, but that would be the final Rough Rider point as Miller scored in the lane on back-to-back possessions before Burns went 2-for-2 from the line late to provide for the final margin.
Brookings, 14-4, plays host to Aberdeen Central on Tuesday in a makeup game that was postponed Feb. 7. Tipoff is at 7 p.m. at Jostad.
BROOKINGS 60, S.F. ROOSEVELT 51
S.F. Roosevelt (4-16)
Tariah Ambrose 3-8 1-4 7, Taliyah Hayes 2-9 0-0 5, Tatum Kooima 8-10 0-0 24, Macey Nielson 2-7 1-2 6, Kaela Martinez 1-15 1-8 3, Brooke Almendinger 1-1 0-0 3, Hattie Giblin 1-3 0-0 3, Mackenzie Risnes 0-0 0-0 0, Shayla Tuschen 0-0 0-0 0, Salma Sharif 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 18-53 2-6 51.
Brookings (14-4)
Michaela Jewett 5-13 4-5 18, Johanna Miller 7-14 2-4 16, Alli Gordon 3-9 0-0 9, Carolyn Hieb 1-3 0-0 3, Ava Burns 3-9 2-2 9, Regan Weisbeck 2-6 0-0 5, Kailee Bartels 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 21-54 8-11 60.
S.F. Roosevelt 17 13 15 6 – 51
Brookings 18 19 14 9 – 60
3-point goals – SFR 13-25 (Hayes 1-3, Kooima 8-9, Nielson 1-3, Martinez 1-8, Almendinger 1-1, Giblin 1-1); B 10-26 (Jewett 4-7, Gordon 3-9, Hieb 1-2, Burns 1-4, Weisbeck 1-4). Rebounds – SFR 34 (Hayes 8); B 37 (Jewett 16). Assists – SFR 12 (Martinez 6); B 16 (Jewett 5, Hieb 5). Steals – SFR 2 (Hayes, Nielson); B 5 (Burns 3, Hieb 2). Blocks – SFR 0; B 4 (Jewett 2, Miller, Burns). Turnovers – SFR 11; B 7. Total fouls – SFR 11; B 9. Fouled out – None.
JUNIOR VARSITY
Roosevelt 34, Brookings 26
Points – Jaidyn Bauman 7, Kennedy Schafer 6.
SOPHOMORE
Roosevelt 55, Brookings 35
Points – Ainsley Shelsta 15, Alli Clark 8, Haley Sampson 7.
FRESHMAN
Roosevelt 46, Brookings 33
Points – Alli Clark 8, Ella Bisgard 5.
