5 Takeaways: Carmel at Fishers
Tuesday night I had the chance to take in a possible sectional preview matchup between Carmel (12-7) vs Fishers (18-1). Carmel came into the night with a 9 game win streak which featured wins over state powerhouses Penn and North…
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Continue ReadingTuesday night I had the chance to take in a possible sectional preview matchup between Carmel (12-7) vs Fishers (18-1). Carmel came into the night with a 9 game win streak which featured wins over state powerhouses Penn and North Central. Fishers came in off an ugly loss to North Central to spoil their 17-0 start to the season.
Fishers got off to an early lead led by senior guard Kaitlynn Feagan and never looked back. Tamia Perryman helped Fishers get off to a 25-10 lead before Carmel standouts Bridget Dunn and Kate Clarke got Carmel within 25-20 with 2 minutes to play in the first half. Fishers quickly responded taking a 33-25 lead into the half followed by a Tamia Perryman buzzer-beating three. Coming out of the half Carmel was able to keep the game within 10 points for most of the third quarter as Fishers took a 44-35 lead into the fourth. Fishers took off and never looked back from the start to the finish of the fourth quarter. They forced a ton of turnovers throughout the quarter to go up 59-44 with 2 minutes to play. Fishers finished the night off with a 66-44 win.
5 Takeaways
Tamia Perryman Looked Like a Star
Perryman came out and dominated every aspect of the game from start to finish. She finished with 21 points, 5 rebounds, and several steals. This was a breakout performance for Perryman and if she can duplicate it throughout the state tournament in the coming weeks Fishers will be in good shape. Perryman excelled defensively putting a ton of pressure on ball handlers and spending a majority of her time switching between guarding Carmel’s two main players. She finished 3/5 from three and if she continues to shoot the ball well from the outside she has the potential to become a big-time scoring threat.
Fishers is Extremely Deep
Fishers has at least nine players who can come into the game and give them a huge boost at any given time. They brought high-level freshman guards Olivia and Hailey Smith off the bench and they came in and did their job perfectly. Katie Burton finished with 18 for Fishers and contributed big time on the defensive end. My biggest takeaway I notice with Fishers is how well each player knows their role and limitations. I rarely saw anyone trying to do too much and the movement in the offense was phenomenal.
Bridget Dunn Can Fill It Up
This was my second chance to see Dunn live in-game and she was once again very impressive. She finished with 19 points and 8 reb. She went 3/6 from three and with her size and skill the ability for her to shoot from the outside makes her a matchup nightmare for most teams. Dunn is going to have to keep putting up big performances like this in the coming weeks if Carmel wants to see postseason success.
Carmel Has Potential
Despite the score, Carmel still showed flashes of just how good they can be and how good they have been. In order to play up to their potential Carmel is going to have to protect the ball. They had around ten turnovers for the night and several of those were very avoidable. The duo of sophomore standout Kate Clarke and junior Bridget Dunn should give Carmel an edge throughout the rest of their season.
A Potential Rematch In a Few Weeks?
Both Carmel and Fishers will be competing in a loaded sectional eight field in two weeks at Westfield. Both schools have a shot at taking home the sectional title. Along with them will be defending state champs Hamilton Southeastern. Fishers and HSE are the clear cut favorites in sectional eight. Fishers beat HSE by two in the regular season on a last-second shot. That being said with the talent on Carmel’s roster there is a chance they could come up with a big upset.