By Dan Truttschel
Sports Correspondent
A 30-point output last week in a loss to Edgerton left a few wondering if something was ailing the Big Foot girls basketball team.
As it turned out, the illness was a short-lived one.
Big Foot quickly got back on track Friday night with a dominating 69-44 Rock Valley Conference victory at Palmyra-Eagle. The win improved the Chiefs to 8-4 overall and 5-2 in the RVC, good for second place behind Clinton’s 6-2.
After the struggles with Edgerton – and also in an effort to combat a recent trend – Big Foot coach Rick Schoenbeck added a few new wrinkles for his team to use against zone defenses.
It didn’t take long for those changes to pay off, he said, as Big Foot rolled up a 43-23 halftime lead.
“Surprisingly, our shooting and ball movement with the new offensive sets made them go man on us after the first eight minutes,” he said. “We were in our comfort zone then.
“We kept the pressure up full court with our mix of zone traps and scored 23 points off turnovers for the game. (We had) balanced, unselfish team play.”
Schoenbeck said he wanted to run sets against Palmyra’s zone that not only balanced the floor, but also played to Olivia Briggs’ strength in the high post.
“She is so strong with the ball and can break down defenses off the dribble and find the open girl,” he said.
Brooke Wellhausen led the Chiefs with 16 points, followed by Briggs with 15, Payton Courier with 12 and Regan Courier with nine.
That balanced scoring, which included nine Big Foot players with at least one point, was another key to the win, Schoenbeck said.
“I have always said that my teams are high-quality girls (who) play my style of team ball,” he said. “We win as a team, and that is the only way I allow it.
“Most girls are happier to make a great pass to help a teammate score and do not feel that they have to score for the team to be successful. We pass a few shots up to make another pass at times. (It’s a) totally unselfish team. We create points with spacing and ball movement as we break down the defense.”
The Chiefs’ defense also had a big night, as they forced 27 turnovers – extending a streak of at least 24 turnovers by the opposition in every game this season.
And that wasn’t necessarily an easy feat, Schoenbeck said, as Palmyra-Eagle did have some weapons at their disposal.
“They have four girls who shoot the ball very well from the perimeter,” he said. “We are so good at half-court defense and tight man defense that we put constant pressure on the ball.
“We rebound really well and make you earn every basket. We do need to limit our fouls to keep teams off the free-throw line and scoring points, but I really like our aggression.”
Big Foot was back in action Thursday night at McFarland, and will follow that up with a non-conference home game Saturday against Woodstock (Ill.) at 2:45 p.m.
Even coming off a 25-point win, there’s still work to be done, Schoenbeck said.
“(We need to improve at) protecting the ball and reducing turnovers,” he said. “We play fast, and now we need to play smarter. Every turnover equals one point, and in a close game, it can really matter for winning and losing.”
