By Dan Truttschel
Correspondent
Something told East Troy girls basketball coach Jeff Brown that his team could be in for a fight last week when it hosted Edgerton.
Whatever voice that was hit the nail right on the head.
Edgerton jumped out to a 23-13 first-quarter lead before the Trojans stormed back in the second and held on for a hard-fought 63-59 Rock Valley Conference victory.
The win improved East Troy to 3-0 overall and 3-0 in the RVC heading into a road game Tuesday night at McFarland.
“Edgerton came out and shot lights out in the first quarter,” Brown said. “We didn’t recognize who some of their shooters were.”
After the opening period, Brown said his team started to crank up its defensive pressure, which helped the Trojans turn things around.
East Troy outscored the Tide 19-2 in the period to take a 32-25 lead at halftime.
“I thought we had more of a sense of urgency on defense,” Brown said. “We were able to run a little bit in that quarter, and we took the ball to the hoop, (which allowed) us to get to the line.”
The rest of the game was tight throughout, as Edgerton outscored the Trojans 34-31 the final two quarters to make it close, but East Troy was able to hang on for the win.
Brown said his team’s experience – especially in tight games – may have helped in the end.
“We kept our cool throughout the game,” he said. “Even when they made their runs, we were pretty composed.”
The game also gave his team a chance to learn a few things, especially so early in the new season, Brown said.
“It is interesting to see how kids react in these tough situations,” he said. “There were a lot of things to go back over and learn from.”
Breanna Gaspervich led the way with 24 points and four assists, followed by Rachel Atchison with 12 points and seven rebounds. Andrea Olsen added nine points and four steals, while Alicia Oleson had nine points and five steals.
Following Tuesday’s McFarland game, the Trojans will be back in action Friday night when they travel to Palmyra-Eagle.
Brown is looking for a quicker start out of the gate this week from his team.
“I want us to start a little better,” he said. “We are not starting games out very well. Palmyra has a strong a post game, so we will have to take that away from them. We need to play our game, play fast and smart.”
