Girls to face team Tuesday that knocked them out of regional semifinals
By Dan Truttschel
Correspondent
When it comes to the Big Foot High School girls basketball team, the recipe for success isn’t any secret.
Speed.
The Chiefs rely on their speed, especially on defense, to make life miserable for their opponents, and that’s just what they did Tuesday night against visiting Parkview.
Big Foot pushed the pace and cruised to a 67-46 win in its Rock Valley Conference opener. The Chiefs, who fell 58-57 to Division 1 Janesville Parker Nov. 17 in their season opener, are 1-1 overall.
The Chiefs’ full-court defensive pressure was better Tuesday – and it’s still a work in progress, coach Rick Schoenbeck said.
“We pressured Parkview full court all night,” he said. “We need to get in better shape to pressure the ball full court, but it is early in the season.
“We worked all offenses, presses and defenses we have to see where we need improvement.”
Big Foot’s defense led to 19 steals and forced the Vikings to shoot just 24 percent from the field.
And because of that pressure, the Chiefs enjoyed more offensive efficiency, Schoenbeck said.
“We had 15 more shot attempts because of our defense and rebounding,” he said. “There is no offense that can beat the intense pressure of our defense.
“In addition, we had 41 (shots) to their 22 in the paint. We penetrated the basket well off the dribble and in our offensive sets.”
Morgan Courier led the way for Big Foot (17 points, three steals), followed by Courtney Schoenbeck (12 points, 11 rebounds, six steals), Payton Courier (12 points), Olivia Briggs (11 points, six rebounds, three steals) and Brooke Wellhausen (six rebounds, three steals).
There was plenty of production to go around, Schoenbeck said.
“Courtney played the best all-around game I have seen her play in high school,” he said. “All phases were strong.
“Morgan Courier created well for the offense and was solid in all areas to balance her game. My four core players all are putting up productive numbers.”
Rematch with Cardinals
Next up for the Chiefs is a rematch with Brodhead next Tuesday, Dec. 1. Big Foot fell by a point to the Cardinals in a regional final a year ago, and Schoenbeck said his team is looking forward to its first matchup this year with their conference rival.
“It will be a great game,” he said. “We are poised for revenge. These girls have a bad taste from last year and are ready to roll.”
Schoenbeck said he expects 6-foot-2 center Carly Snudden to return from injury in time for the Brodhead matchup.
As the early-season games continue, Schoenbeck added he will keep tweaking his rotation to find the right combinations on the floor.
And with the frenetic pace he wants the Chiefs to play at, there will be roles for a number of players.
“We can play with any team in the state,” he said. “We added more playing time for the non-starters (Tuesday), and we need to improve the production of those girls.
“This is a process that I will build game by game and develop a rotation and roles they are responsible for. We must still improve our shooting percentage to handle opposing teams each night.”
