(Avoca) On KSOM Wednesday night AHSTW opposes Nodaway Valley for a trip to the girls state basketball tournament.
AHSTW coach Jill Vanderhoof admits her group has no interest in getting into a track meet with one of the highest scoring teams in the state. “Trying to slow down the pace to play our game. Nodaway Valley really looks to push the ball up the court. If we make them play a half court game that would really benefit us in the long run.” Another important factor will be getting defensive stops, “We’ve been really fueled by our defense lately, so as long as we take priority in that the shots will come.”
Since an 8-5 start the Lady Vikes have reeled off nine wins in their last ten games. “They’ve been relaxed and focused the last couple of weeks. Starting right after Christmas Break it’s almost been like the flip of a switch for this team. There’s just been a different atmosphere and it continues to improve.”
The defense will be tasked with slowing down Maddax DeVault, a 24 points per game scorer. AHSTW has some options to throw at her. “One of the big things for us lately is contain drives. She’s a threat outside, but she also like to drive. So we need to make sure our help defense is there. We’ve worked on that a lot and it’s finally coming around to where it needs to be.”
Keep in mind, this AHSTW lost by one point in a regional final last season. “They are really excited to be back where they were last year. Not every person that is playing this year played last year, but they all got a sense and a feel and they want a different ending to the night.”
The matchup will be played in Atlantic. Pregame starts at 6:45 and the game begins at 7:00 on 96.5 FM KSOM.
