Whitehall to focus on the 'little things'

With two weeks left in the regular season, the Whitehall High School girls basketball will be focusing on the 'little things' as they prepare for the postseason. The Lady Trojans (10-4, 5-3 5B) fell in two conference games the first a 74-48 home loss to undefeated Big Timber and a thrilling 58-54 double-overtime road loss to Three Forks.

Head Coach Kelly Nieskens said the team talked after the Three Forks game about breaking down the little things they need to work on.

"We've got to get them fixed, but we are not worried. We know what we are doing wrong. We just have to go out and fix it," he said.

It was a back and forth battle Saturday night in Three Forks with the two teams tied at 8 at the end of the first quarter. The Wolves would take an 18-14 lead into halftime and push the lead to 29-20 in the third before consecutive three-pointers from Brynna Wolfe and Britney Welker cut the lead to 29-26 going into the fourth.

Whitehall would take a 44-41 lead late in regulation after a Megan Johnson free throw before Three Forks tied the game with 3.8 seconds left on a three-pointer from Ashlyn Swenson. It was a low scoring first overtime period with the Trojans scoring all five points from the free-throw line and heading into the second overtime tied at 49.

The Wolves outscored Whitehall 9-5 in the final overtime to secure the five-point victory.

Nieskens said the team got themselves in a couple of holes in the game but were able to fight back.

"We got it to where we were playing our game and then it got into overtime and they dictated what we were going to do. That's the part we are struggling to figure out and looking to fix...how do we keep playing our game for four quarters. It is something to focus on. Late in the game, we need to capitalize on opportunities. We kept trying to play fast with the lead instead of playing more efficiently. We have to play smarter basketball," he said.

Whitehall was led in scoring by Johnson with 13 points. Asha Noyes had 12, Jada Clarkson finished with 11, Wolfe had seven, Maxine Hoagland added five and Kendra Klapan had five points.

Noyes had eight of her points in the fourth quarter and Nieskens praised the play of the senior.

"This is the most minutes she played since last season. It was good to see her back on the court smiling and playing the hard nose basketball she is used to playing. It was a big confidence booster for her and for the rest of the girls. She's a piece of the team we have been missing and it is nice to have that back. She definitely makes us better," Nieskens said.

The Lady Trojans fell behind early in their game Friday against the Lady Herders and trailed 36-16 at the half.

Clarkson and Wolfe each had 12, Ashlyn Ellison finished with 11, and Noyes added six points.

Whitehall will next be in action Thursday at home against Manhattan and will be on the road Friday against Gardiner.