Learning to play varsity

The lady Dragons basketball team got a win and a loss last week but as the season progresses they’re getting better and the games are getting closer.
Against Athens on Dec. 11, the team secured their first victory of the season, 45-35, while the team fell to Linden on Dec. 14, 43-34.
‘We’re closing the gaps in the areas we need to improve on. We’d like to have those victories but of the six games we played so far, four of them were contested games that could have gone either way,? said Coach Steve Roberts. ‘We’re getting those games all within a 10 point margin. In all fairness to the team I have five girls returning but only two girls with a lot of varsity level playing experience. It’s a big jump from JV to varsity, especially when those are sophomores jumping up.?
Against Athens, the leading scorers were junior Nicole Krier with 14 points, freshman Delaney Haan with eight, senior Emily Kipp with eight and junior Melanie Gagen with seven.
Against, Linden the girls started out slower in the first quarter and allowed a 14-6 lead for the Eagles that they could not recover from, despite closing the score to just three points with three minutes left in the game.
Krier again led the team with 13 points, Kipp with 12 (10 rebounds) and Haan with five (11 rebounds.)
Roberts said he is isolating the problems he sees and working on them with the team.
‘The main thing is taking care of the basketball – we had a lot of turnovers in the early season, we’ve been better on getting more scoring opportunities and our shooting percentage is starting to increase,? said Roberts. ‘Rebounding is improving, we still struggle offensively and that’s deceptive because a lot of points against our defense is a result of offensive turnovers. We’re probably averaging about 47 points against us and about 35 points for us.?
The team is still down a player – sophomore Hannah Hamay continues her absence due to a shoulder injury though she is expected back in January. Roberts believes she will generate another 10 points on average.
The girls will play Farmington on Jan. 3. Roberts said they tend to be a ‘hot and cold? team.
‘We have to figure out who they are and we have to figure out who we are if we want to win this game,? said Roberts.
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On Dec. 27, Lake Orion High School will host its second annual girls? alumni basketball game. More players are needed and those interested should contact Steve Roberts at 248-693-7600 or at his email: sroberts@lakeorion.k12.mi.us.

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