George Rogers Clark’s goal is to wear opponents down one way or another.
And sometimes in more ways than one.
“We want to fatigue them mentally and physically,” said Coach Robbie Graham after his Cardinals topped Franklin-Simpson 69-34 on Friday night to advance to the Clark’s Pump-N-Shop Sweet 16.
“As you know, when you’re tired physically, then you start to make mental mistakes, you’re not as sharp with your passes, your cuts aren’t as sharp,” Graham continued.
The Cardinals looked plenty sharp in their quarterfinal contest at Rupp Arena, forcing 19 turnovers and turning them into 26 points. They outrebounded Franklin-Simpson 32-20, including 14 on the offensive end leading to 14 second-chance points for GRC.
The Cards’ full-court press did its part, especially in the second half when they outscored the Wildcats 35-16. George Rogers Clark led by as many as 38 points midway through the fourth quarter and they led from start to finish.
Teigh Yeast, who led four Cardinals in double figures with 19 points and six assists, got in some early foul trouble, but locked in.
“I just knew I was going to have to come in and play smart but still play my game,” Yeast said. “We have a deep bench, so I knew my teammates if something happened, they were going to come up and step in.”
Eliyah Strode added 13 points, 10 rebounds, six steals and three blocked shots. Both Kennedy Stamper and Kyleigh Chestnut had 12 points apiece.
“They really throw a lot of bodies at you for one, so they’re staying fresh and they have about four or five ways they do it in their press,” Ashley Taylor, head coach of Franklin-Simpson said. “They’re very athletic, very physical so they kind of wear on you as the game goes, I think you can see that in both of the games they’ve played at the state tournament.”
Tiffany Harrigan, Kloie Smith and Allye Pennington had 10 points apiece for the Wildcats, who ended their season at 25-8. They had six seniors on the roster this year, but only one had significant varsity experience. Taylor said she was proud of how that group grew into leaders and helped the team get to the Sweet 16.
“There were times that they would be in the gym, and I wouldn’t even be there, and they just really set that tone, that they were going to do everything in their power to make their own run,” the coach said. “We talked a lot about this being their journey.”
But only one team can come home happy from a visit to Rupp Arena this March.
Cardinals star Strode summed up what would make her team happy at the end of this tournament: “All that matters in the end is getting that big, gold ball.”
