Fourth quarter troubles continue for Rams
RED OAK - For the second straight game and third time this season the Glenwood girls held a lead in the fourth quarter but couldn’t put the game away in a tough road loss.
The Rams turned the ball over 11 times and were out-scored 20-7 in the final frame in a 49-39 at Red Oak last Tuesday.
Glenwood coach Katy Bowen said the Rams’ fourth quarter troubles – coming off a previous 54-43 loss to Denison in which they were out-scored 25-2 in the fourth – are as much psychological as physical. A situation not helped by the loss of her top two ball handlers early in the fourth quarter due to fouls.
“We struggle against pressure and we’re not used to playing with a lead and that feels psychological to me,” Bowen said after the game. “And we have to find ways to keep Brielle (Smith) and Brooklyn (Taylor) on the floor. They both foul out in the fourth quarter and we lose our two main ball handlers who drive the offense and are aggressive. We have good players, but we’re better with them on the floor.”
The Rams’ sharp defense kept them in the game early.
With both teams struggling to mount much offense, Red Oak led 19-18 after a rugged first half that saw two teams combine for 18 team fouls.
In the third quarter, the Rams’ offense heated up. Back-to-back Brielle Smith layups keyed a 8-2 run to put Glenwood ahead 30-25 with 3:21 to go in the frame.
Bowen thought her team defense was the difference the first three quarters.
“We talked a lot before the game about defending without fouls,” Bowen said. “Us giving up fouls or free throws kept us from keeping our best players on the floor. We talked a lot about being patient on defense and we did a really good job of that but down the stretch we had some help situations that led to fouls.”
Glenwood would hold on to a 32-29 lead – despite shooting just 1-of-8 to end the quarter – heading in the final quarter.
The teams would trade baskets to open the frame until a Ellie Ringsdorf layup and then a Sophie Walker runner gave the Tigers their first lead since early in the third quarter at 35-34.
The momentum seemed to energize the Tigers.
Sierra Athen picked up a layup and hit 3-of-4 free throws and Nicole Simpson hit 4-of-4 at the line over the next two minutes to key a 9-0 run to give the Tigers their biggest lead of the game at 44-34 with just under three minutes to go.
While the Tigers were finding their mojo offensively, the Rams’ looked out of synch. With Smith fouling out early in the quarter, the Rams’ other primary ball handler, Brooklyn Taylor, also fouled out. Glenwood never adjusted to the Tigers’ full-court press and never recovered on the scoreboard.
Nicole Schuppan’s three pointer – the Rams’ first bucket of the quarter – with 2:08 to go cut the score to 44-37 but that was as close as the Rams would get.
In all, the Rams turned the ball over 11 times and went nearly six minutes without a point in the final quarter.
“Losing Brielle and Brooklyn definitely hurt us there,” Bowe said. “But we talked a lot about our composure down the stretch. Without those two on the floor we looked a little bit lost.”
If there is a bright spot to the Rams’ fourth quarter struggles it’s the fact Bowen knows her team is on the right track: in Tuesday’s loss to Red Oak and previous losses to Denison and Council Bluffs Thomas Jefferson, Glenwood led by at least five points in all three midway through the fourth quarter.
“I think that can help our confidence,” she said. “I feel like we can be a good team, we have to believe in ourselves and find way to make it through the fourth quarter. I definitely think we’ve gotten better.”
Smith led the Rams with nine points and Taylor added eight.
Red Oak was paced by Vial’s 17 points and Athen’s 16.
The Rams (2-6 overall, 2-3 in the conference) are next in action following the Holiday break when they host Clarinda Jan. 2.