MONROE - The score book suggests the Monroe girls basketball team did a better job against Milton's Morgan Blumer the second time around.
The eyes told a different story.
The Red Hawks junior did score eight fewer points against the Cheesemakers on Tuesday than she did in the teams' Badger Conference opener. But it was when and how the 5-foot-11 forward put up her 24 points that set the tone in Milton's 56-41 victory.
"Oh, she's awesome," Milton coach Scott Randall said. "She's one of those kids that, as a coach, makes you look really good because she can do everything.
"We put a lot of pressure on her in all aspects, but with (her) talent comes responsibility. She steps up to the challenge."
Blumer challenged herself to get the Red Hawks (7-5, 4-2 Badger South) off to a good start, and did she ever deliver in scoring the game's first seven points and piling up 14 first-quarter points as Milton opened a 21-12 lead.
For a Cheesemakers unit that has a standing goal of allowing 45 points per game, that was big trouble.
"I thought in the first quarter when they had 21, I figured that it was going to be 84 (for the game)," Monroe coach Sam Mathiason quipped.
Blumer did it all on three of her first-quarter field goals, making a steal and scoring on the break. She also hit a 3-pointer from the right baseline, converted a three-point play and hit a pair of free throws.
"It was nice to get off on a good run and to show them what we've got," said Blumer, who scored her season high of 32 points in Milton's 56-45 victory against Monroe on Dec 2. She entered play Tuesday averaging 17 points per game.
The Cheesemakers (3-10, 1-5 Badger South) pulled within 31-21 on senior forward Brooke McBain's 3-pointer late in the second quarter, and to within eight when senior forward Abbey Foulker scored in the paint to start the third quarter.
But Blumer hit a 3-pointer from the left wing and added an 18-footer in a 11-3 run that pushed Milton's lead back to 42-26.
Junior reserve guard Briana Katzenberger was the Cheesemakers' second-leading scorer with five points, and Monroe played until the final minute of the game until a third player, junior reserve guard Heather Barta, scored her fourth point.
McBain scored 18 points while her fellow starters netted eight.
"We have a lot of players who can score," McBain said. "We have a lot of shooters on our team that can shoot, and they just don't. That's part of the problem."
Mathiason said the scoring issues aren't for a lack of effort.
"In some regards, we might be trying too hard in that we're thinking too much and we're not able to just anticipate, so we're in a reactionary state," Mathiason said. "That's where we continue to say, 'Where is that second and third scorer going to come from.' "
Forward Sydney Harms Milton's second-leading scorer.
Monroe returns to action Thursday at Madison Edgewood.
The eyes told a different story.
The Red Hawks junior did score eight fewer points against the Cheesemakers on Tuesday than she did in the teams' Badger Conference opener. But it was when and how the 5-foot-11 forward put up her 24 points that set the tone in Milton's 56-41 victory.
"Oh, she's awesome," Milton coach Scott Randall said. "She's one of those kids that, as a coach, makes you look really good because she can do everything.
"We put a lot of pressure on her in all aspects, but with (her) talent comes responsibility. She steps up to the challenge."
Blumer challenged herself to get the Red Hawks (7-5, 4-2 Badger South) off to a good start, and did she ever deliver in scoring the game's first seven points and piling up 14 first-quarter points as Milton opened a 21-12 lead.
For a Cheesemakers unit that has a standing goal of allowing 45 points per game, that was big trouble.
"I thought in the first quarter when they had 21, I figured that it was going to be 84 (for the game)," Monroe coach Sam Mathiason quipped.
Blumer did it all on three of her first-quarter field goals, making a steal and scoring on the break. She also hit a 3-pointer from the right baseline, converted a three-point play and hit a pair of free throws.
"It was nice to get off on a good run and to show them what we've got," said Blumer, who scored her season high of 32 points in Milton's 56-45 victory against Monroe on Dec 2. She entered play Tuesday averaging 17 points per game.
The Cheesemakers (3-10, 1-5 Badger South) pulled within 31-21 on senior forward Brooke McBain's 3-pointer late in the second quarter, and to within eight when senior forward Abbey Foulker scored in the paint to start the third quarter.
But Blumer hit a 3-pointer from the left wing and added an 18-footer in a 11-3 run that pushed Milton's lead back to 42-26.
Junior reserve guard Briana Katzenberger was the Cheesemakers' second-leading scorer with five points, and Monroe played until the final minute of the game until a third player, junior reserve guard Heather Barta, scored her fourth point.
McBain scored 18 points while her fellow starters netted eight.
"We have a lot of players who can score," McBain said. "We have a lot of shooters on our team that can shoot, and they just don't. That's part of the problem."
Mathiason said the scoring issues aren't for a lack of effort.
"In some regards, we might be trying too hard in that we're thinking too much and we're not able to just anticipate, so we're in a reactionary state," Mathiason said. "That's where we continue to say, 'Where is that second and third scorer going to come from.' "
Forward Sydney Harms Milton's second-leading scorer.
Monroe returns to action Thursday at Madison Edgewood.
