Five Takeaways: North Mahaska vs. Grinnell
It was a fast-paced game all night long as North Mahaska traveled to Grinnell and saw the hosts prevail, 95-75. Grinnell made 20 3-pointers on the night as they reinvented their offense to play to the strengths of their players.…
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Continue ReadingIt was a fast-paced game all night long as North Mahaska traveled to Grinnell and saw the hosts prevail, 95-75. Grinnell made 20 3-pointers on the night as they reinvented their offense to play to the strengths of their players. They are about nine players deep on the bench who can really shoot the ball and that was evident on Saturday evening. They full-court pressured the ball and looked to shoot the 3-pointer when they were open and as quick as possible. This led to them attempting more than 45 3-pointers in the game. North Mahaska did a good job of defending at times but the constant motion on the offensive end and the pressure by the guards defensively quickly tired out North Mahaska. There were a ton of very good performances from players on both teams and we look at the five best stat lines and five takeaways that came from the game on Saturday below.
Grinnell Will Win if They Continue This Playstyle
Grinnell came out and played a modified version of “The System” and it worked really well. While they didn’t try to jack shots up at the earliest opportunity, there was a definite emphasis on taking the first good look at a three. Defensively, they allowed quite a few good looks at the basket but when you trap with three players in the backcourt, that will happen. They also were able to create a ton of pressure on the ball-handlers of North Mahaska forcing them to turn it over quite a few times. If Grinnell plays like this all season long I would expect them to rack up some high scoring wins.
Despite a 20-Point Loss, North Mahaska is Very Good
North Mahaska was without one of their top players as Loras commit Cheyenne Shaw was not able to play this evening due to injury. She will be back this year to give them another scoring weapon, however. The duo of Emma Tyrrel and Kassidi Steel was very good in the game against Grinnell. They combined for 43 points and were consistently scoring the ball for North Mahaska. They have a few other scoring options as well but these two are the ones who will really make this team go.
Emma Tyrrel and Kassidi Steel Continue Where They Left Off
Both Tyrrel and Steel return as the leading scorers for North Mahaska and will provide a spark for their team once again. They showed in the first game of the year that they are able to carry the load offensively and as the top two scorers from a year ago, they are right on track to hold that title again. Tyrrel was very solid in the post scoring 25 points on 11 made field goals. She was a very efficient player from the floor too with just 14 shot attempts. Steel knocked down a plethora of mid-range jumpers but just couldn’t get her open looks at 3-pointers to fall. These two are going to be a very dynamic scoring duo this year.
Keelie Eitel, Sarah Gosselink, and Haidyn Hull Can Fill it Up
Eitel, Gosselink, and Hull both showed that they are going to be a threat to knock down shots from the perimeter early on in the game. Eitel had a game-high six 3-pointers and at one point had made five in a row. She was not shy to pull the trigger all game long. Gosselink did the dirty work grabbing offensive rebounds, hustling all over the floor on defense, and getting teammates second-chance looks. Even though she scored 18 points, she might have been the most overlooked component to the Grinnell success. Hull, a freshman who came off the bench, showed her scoring ability early and often as she nailed five 3-pointers. She is going to be a big piece off the bench scoring the ball for Grinnell this season. This is going to be a very good trio going forward.
Both Teams Will Look to Make Noise This Year
North Mahaska is among the top teams in their class and despite losing by 20 points it wasn’t a terrible loss. It felt like they were in it the whole time, but it also didn’t feel like Grinnell was going to ever lose it. I thought that both teams played very well and will make deep runs. Grinnell is going to be at the mercy of their 3-point shooting because if they aren’t hitting they might struggle to win games. Both of these teams will be looking to get back to the Well this year and if they play to their potential, they can do it.
Five Best Stat Lines
Keelie Eitel (Grinnell): 25 points (6/10 3FG)
Emma Tyrrel (North Mahaska): 25 points (11/14 FG)
Kassidi Steel (Grinnell): 18 points, 6 steals, 5 assists
Haidyn Hull (Grinnell): 18 points (5/8 3FG)
Sarah Gosselink (Grinnell): 18 points, 9 rebounds, 5 assists