Defense leads Wildcats to win over Mustangs

Defense led the way for the Blair-Taylor girls basketball team in a conference win last Tuesday.

The Wildcats held Melrose-Mindoro to just 23.6% shooting from the field and forced 26 turnovers in a 55-42 road win. 

The win put B-T at 13-3 overall and 11-2 in Dairyland Conference play, well ahead of Eau Claire Immanuel Lutheran (7-4) in the Small Division standings. B-T will host ECIL on Thursday before welcoming Independence/Gilmanton next Monday, C-FC next Tuesday and Whitehall next Friday. The busy week will continue when B-T plays Royall at JustAgame Fieldhouse in Wisconsin Dells. 

B-T 55 Mel-Min 42

Strong defense helped the Wildcats score easy baskets early.

Coach Jesse Lien said his team was able to force some turnovers and convert offensively with easy baskets as the Wildcats took a 23-15 lead into halftime.

B-T continued to get baskets in transition and worked the ball inside to Andera Waldera to break the game open early in the second half. The Mustangs began to pressure the Wildcats and cut into the lead, but B-T clinched the game by making free throws down the stretch.

Kelcie Kindschy led B-T with 24 points while Waldera scored 17 and pulled down 15 rebounds.

B-T (field goals/attempts-free throws/attempts-rebounds-fouls-points) — Kindschy 8/19-4/5-2-1-24 Beck 1/5-0/3-4-5-2 Waldera 5/11-7/8-15-1-17 Smetana 2/9-0/0-4-1-5 Aguilar 2/8-0/0-4-4-5 Horton 0/1-0/2-1-1-0 Lejcher 0/2-0/0-5-2-0 Peterson 1/5-0/0-3-1-2 Ostenson 0/1-0/0-1-0-0 Thorson 0/3-0/0-3-0-0