10 Best: Northwestern vs Fishers
Northwestern (26-0) took on Fishers (23-1) in the first game of the Marion Regional. Both teams came into the day firing on all cylinders. Northwestern fresh off a big win over McCutcheon and Fishers hot off a big win over…
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Continue ReadingNorthwestern (26-0) took on Fishers (23-1) in the first game of the Marion Regional. Both teams came into the day firing on all cylinders. Northwestern fresh off a big win over McCutcheon and Fishers hot off a big win over local rival Hamilton Southeastern.
Fishers got off to a quick start as they were up 8-2 early over Northwestern. Northwestern would follow the hot Fishers start with a quick run putting them up 16-10 midway through the first quarter. Northwestern led 20-12 after one. The second quarter was a similar story as Northwestern continued to execute set play after set play resulting in a number of wide open layups. Northwestern’s big three of Kendall Bostic, Madison Layden, and Klair Merrell dominated the first half for Northwestern helping them take a 37-19 lead into the half.
Fishers got a little bit of momentum in the third quarter as junior standout Kadie Burton knocked a big shot followed by a big play from Haley Smith. As much as Fishers wanted to they just couldn’t stop the Northwestern post play as Northwestern took a 50-34 lead into the fourth quarter. Northwestern continued to force turnovers and got their lead up to 31 points with four minutes to go in the game. Northwestern held the ball for almost the rest of the game and took home a 67-40 victory.
MVP: Madison Layden (Northwestern)
Layden was a force in this one from start to finish. Her skill and ability to command the game at the point guard position are unreal for a player her age and when you add her physical attributes she becomes nearly impossible to guard. She finished the game with 21 points, 9 assist, 5 rebounds, and 3 steals. Even without shooting that well from the floor you could just see how elite Layden is. Northwestern is going to need another big game from her against Homestead if Northwestern wants to keep rolling through the tournament.
Best Rebounder: Kendall Bostic (Northwestern)
Bostic was by far the best rebounder in this game and you can make a case that she is the best rebounder in Indiana. She had several big offensive rebounds in the first half that were turned into points and resulted in big momentum swings for Northwestern. When Fishers started to make a small run in the third quarter Bostic stepped up again with a big offensive rebound bucket. She finished the game with 12 rebounds total with 8 of them coming on the defensive end.
Best Scorer: Kadie Burton (Fishers)
Despite Fishers struggles as a team Kadie Burton did everything she could on the offensive end to keep Fishers in it. Burton was big early for Fishers as they quickly got off to a 8-2 lead and had momentum. Fishers slowly started to slow down but Burton did all she could to keep Fishers in it. She finished with 15 points on 7/13 shooting from the field.
Best Passer: Madison Layden (Northwestern)
The Northwestern offense was on fire a majority of the game and a lot of that has to do with Layden’s passing skills ands ability to push the tempo. Her court vision was on full display as she had a ton of great passes to cutting players leading to easy points. She finished the game with 9 assist.
Best Underclassman: Haley Smith (Fishers)
As a freshman Smith has been one of the glue pieces to Fishers successful season. Even though her team didn’t get the win today Smith worked hard on the defensive end and had several nice takes to the basket. She finished with 6 points and 4 rebounds in her first career regional game.
Best Upperclassman: Klair Merrell (Northwestern)
Merrell is sometimes overlooked playing with two high major recruits but make no mistake she is the glue for Northwestern. She was big on the offensive end throughout the game as she put up 16 points on 6/8 shooting. She took the ball to the basket with ease and nailed a huge three in the first half to start a momentum shift for Northwestern. Merrell’s work on the defensive end was just as important as she came up with 3 steals and pulled down 5 rebounds. It would not be a surprise to see Merrell come up big for Northwestern against Homestead tonight.
Best Defender: Kendall Bostic (Northwestern)
Few players have an ability to dominate a game in as many places as Bostic does. Defensively against Fishers Bostic was a star. She rarely aloud Fishers to score on her down low as she finished with 5 blocks and a ton of altered shots. Bostic was an essential part of the fierce Northwestern zone using her length to force 4 steals that helped contribute to Northwestern’s 19 points off turnovers.
Best Under the Radar Performance: Audra Emmerson (Fishers)
Emmerson was big time for Fishers as she knocked down a big three several minutes into the game to give Fishers the momentum early. She would go on to finish with 6 points going 2/4 from three. In the three times I saw Fishers this season Emmerson always found a way to make a big play. Fishers loses several impact players to graduation and I expect Emmerson to be one of the key players next season.
Best Key Stat: Northwestern’s Points Off Turnovers
Coming into this game Fishers knew they were going to have to take care of the ball in order to hang with Northwestern. That was not the case as Northwestern was able to force 14 steals which led to 19 points off of turnovers. The Northwestern length combined with their zone made them a very tough team to move the ball on as they left little room for error. Northwestern will need to be a little quicker with their rotation tonight against Homestead if they want to continue their defensive success.
Best Coaches Decision: Northwestern Slowing the Tempo
I’ve had the pleasure of watching Northwestern play a lot over the last few years and they do a great job of adjusting to the situation. Today they were able to slow the game down and run their offense to get easy looks. By the end of the game it’s safe to say that Northwestern had around twelve to fifteen backcuts for open layups. I think they did a great job of finding a balance between preparing for the night game and playing hard against Fishers. Tonight’s matchup vs Homestead has the potential to be a fast paced shootout and we will see how Northwestern adjust.