Page High School girls basketball coach Ron Brock preaches defense and rebounding. Those sermons made the difference Saturday night in a 63-53 Class AAA Sectional win over Clarksville Northwest that sends Page to the TSSAA State Championship Tournament for the first time in school history next week at the Murphy Center in Murfreesboro. The District 11-AAA and Region 6-AAA champions trailed the Lady Vikings 17-10 late in the first quarter after shooting a dismal 4-of-14 from the floor (28.6%) and being out-rebounded on both ends of the floor. So, what fiery advice did the coach share with the team at the quarter break? “I didn’t tell them anything," Brock said. "I just let them go play. They are so good.” Brock’s confidence in his team, which doesn't have a senior on the roster, was proven as Page exploded for 21 points in the second quarter, led by Lili Wilken's 10, while holding Northwest to just four free throws to take a 33-21 lead into halftime – an advantage that was never challenged. “Defense spurs offense,” said Brock. “We had some steals and turnovers that we converted, but I have to hand it to the defense for creating the offense.” The Page defense held Northwest without a field goal for 12 minutes, a stretch covering the end of the first quarter, through the second and all the way to the 6:25 mark of the third when Tiamea Scott picked up her only points of the stanza. The Lady Vikings scoring leader was held to just 14 points on the night, well below her average on the year. “I think we knew we had to stop [Scott],” Wilken said. “She’s obviously very good. But we picked up our defense and rebounding in the second quarter and held them to just a couple of points.” "I think we had a a lot of energy going into the game," teammate McKenzie Cochran added. "We wanted to be able to play lock down defense and we were able to do that. There were a lot of fouls, so we were just trying to be humble on defense and move our feet more." Wilken led Page with 27 points, blistering from the outside with five 3’s and driving consistently into a physical defense for layups, drawing fouls or kicking out for other opportunities. “When she gets hot, we go to her,” Brock commented. “She’s using her body well now – she’s a grown woman playing basketball now, not just a little girl. She is being physical. You saw that when she drove to the basket, she isn’t afraid of anybody and she’ll take it right up against anybody.” Wilken was coming off a 29-point outing when the Lady Patriots topped Cane Ridge on Wednesday 57-49 to win the school's second-ever region title. The junior added eight rebounds, seven assists and three steals Saturday. Cochran, also a junior, tossed in 17 points for Page, hitting 9-of-10 from the line in the fourth quarter, to go with seven rebounds and four assists. Sadie Porter tossed in all eight of her points in the third quarter to help keep the Lady Vikings at bay and also added seven boards. Page (22-7) will face Maryville (25-6), a 56-27 winner at Sevier County Saturday night, in the nightcap next Thursday at 8:30 p.m. to close the first day of the state tournament. Brock may be more excited about the trip than his team. “It feels so good," Brock said. "So good for these girls, this school, this community. I can’t wait for Thursday night.”
Video Highlights: https://youtu.be/iwmG1ea5q2Y
State Tournament Bracket: https://tssaasports.com/event/bracket.cfm?id=20200303
NWHS 17 4 14 18 – 53
PHS 12 21 14 16 – 63
CNHS (53) – Taimia Scott 14, Kayin Howell 10, Nia Bagerty 9, Emylyan Cobb 8, Neishna Dailey 8, Aniega Briscoe 4.
PHS (63) – Lili Wilken 27, McKenzie Cochran 17, Sadie Porter 8, Abigail Ward 5, Braley Bushman 2, MC Pike 2, Brooklyn Burrow 2.
3-pointers – NWHS 5 (Dailey 2, Cobb, Howell, Bagerty), PHS 6 (Wilken 5, Ward). Total Fouls – CNHS 19, PHS 21. Fouled Out – Cobb.
Source: Williamson Herald
