SOUTH WAYNE - Black Hawk girls basketball coach Mike Flanagan's heart skipped a beat like many fans' Tuesday.
"I would be lying if I said, 'No'," Flanagan said after the Warriors dodged a flurry of last-second shots to beat previously unbeaten Potosi 41-39 in a Six Rivers Conference Challenge game Tuesday.
Black Hawk (10-0, 4-0 Six Rivers East), ranked second in the Division 4 Associated Press poll, extended its winning streak to 10 games. With the loss, fourth-ranked Potosi drops to 10-1.
Potosi junior Reba Keene drilled a 3-pointer with 3 minutes, 25 seconds left to give the Chieftains a 38-35 lead.
Black Hawk senior Paige Butler, who scored all of her nine points in the second half, scored down low to tie the score at 38 with 1:47 to go. Warriors sophomore Melissa Wellnitz then came up with a steal, which led to a fade-away jumper by junior Kim Wellnitz banked in to give the Warriors a 40-38 lead with 1:18 left.
Potosi senior Thresia Elskamp missed two go-ahead shots down low with 21 seconds left, and senior Kayla Fecht missed a game-winning shot as time expired, and the Warriors survived.
"When it came down to the end, we found ourselves, played hard and just never gave up," said Kim Wellnitz, who had a team-high 12 points and nine rebounds.
Black Hawk improved its record to 3-0 against teams ranked in the state's top 10: Pecatonica, Orfordville Parkview and now Potosi. The Warriors' schedule doesn't get any easier, with another non-conference game at Potosi on Monday and two games left with seventh-ranked Barneveld.
Early on, the Chieftains used a smothering defense to race out to an 8-0 first-quarter lead. The Warriors had three turnovers in the first 2:20, but Melissa Wellnitz kept the Warriors within striking distance by scoring six of her 10 points in the first quarter.
Butler picked up her second foul at the 7:07 mark of the second quarter and was saddled to the bench for half of the period. The Chieftains went on a 10-4 second-quarter run and took a 23-12 lead after a steal and layup by Elskamp and an offensive rebound and putback by Katie Reynolds.
Potosi held Butler scoreless in the first half on 0-for-5 shooting. But despite 10 first-half turnovers and Butler's foul trouble, the Warriors trailed 26-17 at halftime after Kim Wellnitz buried a 3-pointer.
"They (Potosi) are not dumb," Flanagan said. "They are not going to give a kid like Paige a lot of opportunities. I think if you are going to be a really good team, you have to have a lot of options."
In the second half, the Warriors dialed up their defensive pressure and stifled the Chieftains with a press and halfcourt trap. The Warriors went on a 10-2 third-quarter run and took their first lead, 27-25, on a basket down low by Butler. The Chieftains had 10 of their 21 turnovers in the third quarter.
"We just wanted to attack," Flanagan said. "It's part of our run-and-jump principle. The way we run our press, it wears people down."
The Warriors took the defensive intensity to heart.
"We were a little slow in the first half," Kim Wellnitz said. "We had to play more aggressive and hard."
That set the stages for a thrilling finish. Both Butler and Melissa Wellnitz picked up their fourth fouls with just more than 5 minutes left. Black Hawk senior Hailey Meier then drove in and drained a jumper with 4:53 to tie the score at 35. Despite the foul trouble, 2-of-5 free throw shooting in the last 2:22 and giving up numerous offensive rebounds, the Warriors found a way to win.
"You sometimes say, 'How the heck did we win,' Flanagan said. "You have to make plays at the right time. Our kids made plays when they needed to."
"I would be lying if I said, 'No'," Flanagan said after the Warriors dodged a flurry of last-second shots to beat previously unbeaten Potosi 41-39 in a Six Rivers Conference Challenge game Tuesday.
Black Hawk (10-0, 4-0 Six Rivers East), ranked second in the Division 4 Associated Press poll, extended its winning streak to 10 games. With the loss, fourth-ranked Potosi drops to 10-1.
Potosi junior Reba Keene drilled a 3-pointer with 3 minutes, 25 seconds left to give the Chieftains a 38-35 lead.
Black Hawk senior Paige Butler, who scored all of her nine points in the second half, scored down low to tie the score at 38 with 1:47 to go. Warriors sophomore Melissa Wellnitz then came up with a steal, which led to a fade-away jumper by junior Kim Wellnitz banked in to give the Warriors a 40-38 lead with 1:18 left.
Potosi senior Thresia Elskamp missed two go-ahead shots down low with 21 seconds left, and senior Kayla Fecht missed a game-winning shot as time expired, and the Warriors survived.
"When it came down to the end, we found ourselves, played hard and just never gave up," said Kim Wellnitz, who had a team-high 12 points and nine rebounds.
Black Hawk improved its record to 3-0 against teams ranked in the state's top 10: Pecatonica, Orfordville Parkview and now Potosi. The Warriors' schedule doesn't get any easier, with another non-conference game at Potosi on Monday and two games left with seventh-ranked Barneveld.
Early on, the Chieftains used a smothering defense to race out to an 8-0 first-quarter lead. The Warriors had three turnovers in the first 2:20, but Melissa Wellnitz kept the Warriors within striking distance by scoring six of her 10 points in the first quarter.
Butler picked up her second foul at the 7:07 mark of the second quarter and was saddled to the bench for half of the period. The Chieftains went on a 10-4 second-quarter run and took a 23-12 lead after a steal and layup by Elskamp and an offensive rebound and putback by Katie Reynolds.
Potosi held Butler scoreless in the first half on 0-for-5 shooting. But despite 10 first-half turnovers and Butler's foul trouble, the Warriors trailed 26-17 at halftime after Kim Wellnitz buried a 3-pointer.
"They (Potosi) are not dumb," Flanagan said. "They are not going to give a kid like Paige a lot of opportunities. I think if you are going to be a really good team, you have to have a lot of options."
In the second half, the Warriors dialed up their defensive pressure and stifled the Chieftains with a press and halfcourt trap. The Warriors went on a 10-2 third-quarter run and took their first lead, 27-25, on a basket down low by Butler. The Chieftains had 10 of their 21 turnovers in the third quarter.
"We just wanted to attack," Flanagan said. "It's part of our run-and-jump principle. The way we run our press, it wears people down."
The Warriors took the defensive intensity to heart.
"We were a little slow in the first half," Kim Wellnitz said. "We had to play more aggressive and hard."
That set the stages for a thrilling finish. Both Butler and Melissa Wellnitz picked up their fourth fouls with just more than 5 minutes left. Black Hawk senior Hailey Meier then drove in and drained a jumper with 4:53 to tie the score at 35. Despite the foul trouble, 2-of-5 free throw shooting in the last 2:22 and giving up numerous offensive rebounds, the Warriors found a way to win.
"You sometimes say, 'How the heck did we win,' Flanagan said. "You have to make plays at the right time. Our kids made plays when they needed to."
