BELLEVILLE — Brodhead went into its road game at Belleville looking to make an impression. Last season, the Wildcats knocked off the Cardinals by 19 in a WIAA Division 4 regional final; but this year on Jan. 20 Brodhead wowed the crowd with an impressive 72-41 win, which included a lead reaching as much as 43 in the second half.
“It’s a good feeling, especially since the last time we played them on this course it didn’t end the way that we wanted — we lost a regional championship,” Brodhead senior guard Carisa Purdue said. “For me, coming back this year and getting to play on this floor again and have it go the other way is a really great feeling.”
The Cardinals (10-4) came out guns blazing on both sides of the court. Brodhead scored the first 10 points of the game and held Belleville (9-6) to just four points though the first seven minutes of the game.
“We focused on being able to defend. We knew that we really needed to keep tabs on (Jenna) Shader and (Erin) Kittleson from outside — if those guys get hot it’s a completely different ball game,” said Brian Kammerer, Brodhead coach. Shrader and Kittleson were held scoreless on the night.
It’s a good feeling, especially since the last time we played them on this course it didn’t end the way that we wanted — we lost a regional championship. For me, coming back this year and getting to play on this floor again and have it go the other way is a really great feeling.Carisa Purdue
The Wildcats used a short 8-3 run to pull to within six at 18-12 with 10:31 left in the first half, but then Brodhead took back full control of the momentum, tearing off a 29-7 run to close out the half. The Wildcats trailed 47-19 at the break.
“I was proud of the girls in the first half; the second half we’ll talk about tomorrow at practice,” Kammerer said.
It wasn’t just one or two Cardinal players taking over — it was the collective unit. Madisyn Kail came out blazing and scored 12 points in the first half, including connecting on two big 3-pointers that set the pace.
“It was good to be back and hitting stuff again, especially coming off my thumb injury,” said Kail, who had gotten a splint on her hand removed recently.
Purdue had 10 points in the half, including going coast to coast off a pair of steals late in the half. Onnikah Oliver hit two 3s and had eight points, and Kiarra Moe and Abbie Dix went into the locker room with seven for Brodhead.
“It was nice to see Madisyn Kail come out and give us a spark in the first half — she finally got that splint off her thumb and I think she felt more confident. We’re definitely going to need her as the year progresses,” Kammerer said.
The second half was a slightly different story. While Brodhead was able to stretch the lead to 43 points at 64-21 with 10:16 left, turnovers became an issue for the Cardinals.
“It was just our turnovers. We have to pick ourselves up on those little things — taking care of the ball,” Kail said.
I was proud of the girls in the first half; the second half we’ll talk about tomorrow at practice.Brian Kammerer
Belleville went the final 10 minutes of the game outscoring Brodhead 20-8. The Cardinals were also called for 10 fouls over the final 10 minutes of play.
“It was a tale of two halves. We talked about finishing,” Kammerer said. “In the second half we had close to 15 turnovers, which was disappointing. If we are going to beat some of these good teams down the stretch, we need to play good basketball in both halves, and I don’t think we did tonight.”
Kail finished with a game-high 17 points, while Purdue ended up with 14, Dix 13 and Moe nine. Oliver didn’t score in the second half.
“We as players knew going into the locker room after the game that it was not our best half. We’ll take that and make improvements on it,” Purdue said.
Ava Foley’s 11 points paced Belleville, with Mickey Stampfl adding 10.
