Photo by TRAVIS DAVID | North Knox's Baylee McClure comes up with a steal near midcourt in the second quarter of Wednesday's win at Sullivan.

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BY TRAVIS DAVID

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SULLIVAN — Since taking over the program last year, Sullivan girls basketball coach Vance Edmondon has challenged his team not to fear superior opponents.

Playing host to Class 2A No. 9 ranked North Knox Wednesday night, the Lady Arrows delivered the first punch. Sullivan scored the first six points of the game causing Warriors’ head coach Steve Meurer to exhaust a quick timeout.

But the momentum would be short-lived as North Knox used a 27-4 run over the next eight minutes to take control of the game.

Behind the big run, the Warriors upended the hosts, 71-38.

With the win — its second in three nights — North Knox improved to 13-6 while the Lady Arrows dropped to 12-7, ending a brief 3-game winning streak.

“North Knox is obviously a great team and we did not back down from them to start the game,” Edmondson said. “But that second quarter just killed us. We can’t give up that many points against a team like this.”

The Warriors led 16-10 after the first eight minutes of play and carried a 42-14 advantage into the locker room at the half. 

Turnovers played a big part in the Warriors’ ability to run away from Sullivan. The North Knox defense forced 13 turnovers through the first 16 minutes of play helping turn the early deficit into a comfortable lead at the break.

“We have gotten off to some slow starts here of late but the one thing this team has done is play with a high level of intensity for the rest of the game,” Warriors’ coach Steve Meurer said. “And that intensity all starts at the defensive end.”

After Lexi Primus opened the second-quarter scoring with a bucket in the lane on a give-in-go with Brynna Collins, the pair took turns coming up with steals and turning them into easy transition buckets for a 22-10 lead.

Primus netted 11 of her game-high 22 points in the second period.

In the third, North Knox was on the verge of enforcing the running clock the rest of the way after a free throw by Jade Richter pushed the lead to 53-19. But the Arrows found a little rhythm and finished the frame on a 12-3 run. Triples from freshman Rigley Goodman, Ally McKinney and Avari Kelley highlighted the run.

“Things may not have gone our way tonight, but the girls did not give up,” Edmondson said. “I think we played them to a 5-point game in the second half, so we will take that as a positive.”

Primus made sure the hosts would not entertain the idea of a large fourth-quarter comeback as she scored the first eight points of the fourth including a pair of 3-pointers.

Collins added 19 points and seven rebounds in the win while Alex McKinley (10) and Baylee McClure (8) combined for 18.

As a team, North Knox finished shooting 56 percent from the field (25 of 45) compared to the Arrows’ 15 of 44 (34 percent).

“We still missed a few bunnies, but overall I thought we shot the ball really well,” the Warriors’ coach said of the offense. “And a lot of that had to do with our transition offense. When we play like that, there’s not many teams who can meet us.”

McKinney paced the Arrows with 11 points while Kelley knocked down a pair of triples in part of her eight points and four-assist night.

Sullivan leading scorer Jacie Wilson was held to seven points and seven rebounds after missing most of the second-half with an illness.

Goodman matched Kelley and McKinney with a pair of shots from beyond the arc, accounting for her six points.

Sullivan (12-7) returns to conference play, hosting Cloverdale Friday night while the Warriors (13-6) play host to county rival Vincennes Lincoln Saturday night. 

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