Evanston’s Cooley nearly closes out Glenbrook South
BY CHARLES BERMAN cberman@pioneerlocal.com January 17, 2012 5:22PM
Gleview- Amelia Hummel GBS fouls Alecia Cooley of ETHS. Girls basketball game: Glenbrook South vs. Evanston.. | Joe Cyganowski ~ For Sun Times Media
standings
CSL South
Maine South 5-1 20-1
Niles West 5-1 16-6
Glenbrook S. 4-2 15-4
Evanston 2-4 10-10
New Trier 2-4 13-6
Waukegan 0-5 2-16
CSL North
Niles North 5-1 11-9
Maine West 5-1 7-13
Glenbrook N. 5-2 15-5
Highland Park 2-4 9-10
Deerfield 2-5 5-17
Maine East 0-6 3-15
(Records through Monday)
Article Extras
Updated: February 20, 2012 9:12AM
Evanston center Alecia Cooley played nearly the entire game Friday night, scored 11 points in both halves, and nearly led the Wildcats to an upset win at Glenbrook South.
The Wildcats ultimately dropped the CSL South contest 49-41, but two Cooley free throws with under a minute remaining pulled Evanston within three points.
The Titans were able to seal the win, however, connecting on 7-of-10 free-throw attempts in the final two minutes. Glenbrook South earned 40 free throw attempts on the night.
“I was proud of the girls. We played a lot of kids that weren’t as talented as some of their players,” said Evanston coach Elliot Whitefield. “We are trying to establish a consistent way of playing.
“It was anybody’s game down to maybe a minute or so.”
Cooley agreed. She also expressed pride in the way the Wildcats (10-10, 2-4) kept rallying back to stay in the game.
The 6-foot-2 Evanston junior pointed to the Wildcats’ five-point run to open the second half. Capped off by a three-point play from Cooley, the spurt helped the Wildcats pull even, at 30-all, with four minutes to play in the third quarter.
“We didn’t start off too strong but I thought we fought til the end even though the outcome didn’t go our way,” she said. “I felt like I played hard and I pulled for my team like I should in every game.”
Cooley also credited the Titans defense and offensive execution, which was spearheaded by Glenbrook South senior point guard Colleen McDonagh.
McDonagh scored all 12 of her second-half points from the line.
“I get to the line a lot,” she said. “Lately my free-throw percentage hasn’t been as good as it has been previously, like last year, so I’ve been working on that a lot in practice.
“I think that’s part of my game that I definitely need to perfect just because a free throw should be an easy point.”
McDonagh led the Titans (15-4, 4-2) with 17 points. Her younger sister, 6-foot junior forward Molly McDonagh, added a double-double (12 points, 12 rebounds) for Glenbrook South.
“We wanted to get the ball inside,” Titans coach Steve Weissenstein said. “I thought we did a good job with that. We took the ball to the basket hard. We do have a size advantage on a lot of teams.”
While Cooley scored more than half of Evanston’s total on Friday, the Titans scoresheet displayed the opposite story. Not only did all five Glenbrook South starters contribute baskets in the first quarter, reserve guard Sara Meinecke bounced off the bench for a layup as well.
The second quarter opened with reserve forward Katie Jennings adding another basket before 10 seconds could roll off the clock. The balanced scoring lifted Glenbrook South to a 25-19 lead at the half
“All our girls that played could lead us in scoring on any given night,” Weissenstein said. “They all have confidence in their game. The big thing about them is they are very athletic and they are able to run the floor. I think we got some easy baskets in transition.”
The Titans’ solid foul shooting in the final minutes sealed Glenbrook South’s season sweep of Evanston.
Meanwhile, Evanston coach Whitefield said he is still trying to find a group committed to competing for 32 minutes.
“It’s unfortunate but Evanston girls basketball is in the baby step process at this point,” Whitefield said. “We are going to find girls who will play hard. I’m real proud of the effort of the girls who went into the game and just did whatever was needed to help the team.”
Whitefield called Cooley’s scoring and rebounding prowess “incredible.”
“She’s been our most consistent player all year,” he said. “She really keeps improving. And only being a junior, the sky is the limit for her depending on how hard she works in the offseason.”
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