MONROE - Brodhead senior Amber Pickel didn't hang her head or dwell too much about a shooting slump in the first half of a non-conference game against Monroe Saturday.
Pickel had the hot hand in the second half, scoring 14 of her 16 points during a 6-minute, 39-second stretch in the second half to catapult the Cardinals to a 61-51 comeback win over Monroe.
"At halftime, we had to regroup because our shots were not falling," Pickel said. "We are not the tallest team, but we are fast. We were attacking the basket. I moved around a lot more to get open. Before the game we always talk and write on the board "We want it more.' I think we wanted it more in the second half."
Pickel saved her best shooting performance for the second half as she made 6 of 8 shots, including two 3-pointers to ignite the Cardinals' comeback from a one-time nine-point first-half deficit.
The Cardinals went on a 13-0 run and took a 46-33 lead after sophomore Erin Nyhus and senior Kylie Moe's layups with 10:31 to go. Moe finished with a game-high 23 points and eight rebounds, while Nyhus had 17 points to propel the Cardinals, which improved to 3-0, 1-0 Rock Valley South.
"Moe and Pickel have that senior leadership and they know what to do and how to do it," Monroe coach Sam Mathiason said. "They willed their team to victory. Part of it was that defensively we were probably playing a little softer than we should have. We just got into a hole and weren't able to get out of it. We have to be able to learn from that and limit the runs."
Monroe junior Lexi Hilliard drilled a 3-pointer that sliced the Cardinals' lead to nine points. The Cardinals answered with Cameron Novy hitting a 3-pointer to extend the Cardinals' lead to 49-37 with 8:27 left to help seal the win.
With the loss, Monroe drops to 1-2, 0-1 Badger South.
Monroe freshman Sydney Hilliard scored a team-high 15 points and had three steals. Lexi Hilliard, Sydney's older sister, scored nine points and freshman Emily Benzschawel added seven points. Sophomore Sydney Mathiason chipped in six points and grabbed six rebounds.
"We should have pushed the ball more," Sydney Hilliard said. "I think our defense could have been better because Kylie Moe is such a good shooter. I definitely think we should have passed and moved the ball more."
Brodhead coach Brian Kammerer was proud to see his team turn up the defense in the second half, limiting the Cheesemakers to 37.5 percent shooting (9 of 24) and 24 points.
"The big thing is we played defense in the second half with a little more energy," Kammerer said. "We were not giving up second-chance opportunities like we did in the first half. Hats off to our girls for finding a way to get it done. Monroe is a tough and up-and-coming team."
Pickel also had the task of guarding the 6-1 Sydney Mathiason down low, despite a size disadvantage.
"Sydney Mathiason is such a physical presence," Kammerer said. "She (Pickel) was a huge spark. She has to have a little more confidence that she can step out and knock the shot down. When she hit that first one (3-pointer) that gave her the confidence to make that second one."
Early on, the Cheesemakers opened with a hot start. Monroe senior Brooke Adams knocked down a 3-pointer and Sydney Mathiason buried a 3-pointer to give the Cheesemakers a 10-4 lead with 12:20 left in the first half. Benzschawel drilled a jumper and scored on a layup to give the Cheesemakers their largest lead at 17-8 with 9:25 to go in the first half. The Cardinals made a run and with Moe's layup sliced the Cheesemakers' lead to 27-21 at the half.
"I think a part of it is how you can contain Kylie Moe, Amber Pickel and Erin Nyhus," Mathiason said. "They all have the ability to score a lot of points. We did a really nice job of making it tough on them. The effort was very good. We hit some shots and got on a roll."
Sam Mathiason is excited about Sydney Hilliard's development as a point guard as a freshman in her first three games.
"Sydney Hilliard has a unique hop and flow to her game," he said. "She has the ability to get to the basket. We have some balance this year. On any given night, we have people that will put up points."
It marked Sydney Hilliard and Benzschawel's third games on the varsity.
"I think we have played very good," Sydney Hilliard said of the Cheesemakers' first three games, which have included two against more experienced teams that have made sectional runs the last several years.
"It's a good experience for us against really good teams. We have to get better. We should be better the next couple of games."
Pickel had the hot hand in the second half, scoring 14 of her 16 points during a 6-minute, 39-second stretch in the second half to catapult the Cardinals to a 61-51 comeback win over Monroe.
"At halftime, we had to regroup because our shots were not falling," Pickel said. "We are not the tallest team, but we are fast. We were attacking the basket. I moved around a lot more to get open. Before the game we always talk and write on the board "We want it more.' I think we wanted it more in the second half."
Pickel saved her best shooting performance for the second half as she made 6 of 8 shots, including two 3-pointers to ignite the Cardinals' comeback from a one-time nine-point first-half deficit.
The Cardinals went on a 13-0 run and took a 46-33 lead after sophomore Erin Nyhus and senior Kylie Moe's layups with 10:31 to go. Moe finished with a game-high 23 points and eight rebounds, while Nyhus had 17 points to propel the Cardinals, which improved to 3-0, 1-0 Rock Valley South.
"Moe and Pickel have that senior leadership and they know what to do and how to do it," Monroe coach Sam Mathiason said. "They willed their team to victory. Part of it was that defensively we were probably playing a little softer than we should have. We just got into a hole and weren't able to get out of it. We have to be able to learn from that and limit the runs."
Monroe junior Lexi Hilliard drilled a 3-pointer that sliced the Cardinals' lead to nine points. The Cardinals answered with Cameron Novy hitting a 3-pointer to extend the Cardinals' lead to 49-37 with 8:27 left to help seal the win.
With the loss, Monroe drops to 1-2, 0-1 Badger South.
Monroe freshman Sydney Hilliard scored a team-high 15 points and had three steals. Lexi Hilliard, Sydney's older sister, scored nine points and freshman Emily Benzschawel added seven points. Sophomore Sydney Mathiason chipped in six points and grabbed six rebounds.
"We should have pushed the ball more," Sydney Hilliard said. "I think our defense could have been better because Kylie Moe is such a good shooter. I definitely think we should have passed and moved the ball more."
Brodhead coach Brian Kammerer was proud to see his team turn up the defense in the second half, limiting the Cheesemakers to 37.5 percent shooting (9 of 24) and 24 points.
"The big thing is we played defense in the second half with a little more energy," Kammerer said. "We were not giving up second-chance opportunities like we did in the first half. Hats off to our girls for finding a way to get it done. Monroe is a tough and up-and-coming team."
Pickel also had the task of guarding the 6-1 Sydney Mathiason down low, despite a size disadvantage.
"Sydney Mathiason is such a physical presence," Kammerer said. "She (Pickel) was a huge spark. She has to have a little more confidence that she can step out and knock the shot down. When she hit that first one (3-pointer) that gave her the confidence to make that second one."
Early on, the Cheesemakers opened with a hot start. Monroe senior Brooke Adams knocked down a 3-pointer and Sydney Mathiason buried a 3-pointer to give the Cheesemakers a 10-4 lead with 12:20 left in the first half. Benzschawel drilled a jumper and scored on a layup to give the Cheesemakers their largest lead at 17-8 with 9:25 to go in the first half. The Cardinals made a run and with Moe's layup sliced the Cheesemakers' lead to 27-21 at the half.
"I think a part of it is how you can contain Kylie Moe, Amber Pickel and Erin Nyhus," Mathiason said. "They all have the ability to score a lot of points. We did a really nice job of making it tough on them. The effort was very good. We hit some shots and got on a roll."
Sam Mathiason is excited about Sydney Hilliard's development as a point guard as a freshman in her first three games.
"Sydney Hilliard has a unique hop and flow to her game," he said. "She has the ability to get to the basket. We have some balance this year. On any given night, we have people that will put up points."
It marked Sydney Hilliard and Benzschawel's third games on the varsity.
"I think we have played very good," Sydney Hilliard said of the Cheesemakers' first three games, which have included two against more experienced teams that have made sectional runs the last several years.
"It's a good experience for us against really good teams. We have to get better. We should be better the next couple of games."
