I guess when the final score is what it was Tuesday night, you don’t have much of a stance if you are anti-Eastside aggression. The Blazers put 13 first-half fouls behind them to beat Blackhawk Christian 37-28 after a stellar second half.
But you did read that right. They did commit 13 fouls IN THE FIRST HALF, enough to have to play the majority of the half without three starters and most of the second quarter without their first player off the bench. The Braves took advantage of that in the second eight-minute frame and led 15-13 at halftime.
That’s not where we hand out wins though.
There were times early on that Blackhawk Christian almost baited Eastside. The Braves came out with their own full-court pressure and then drove consistently, sometimes with sloppy shots that look so blockable to a salivating defender.
And so Eastside attacked, pressured the ball and worked to defend the rim. It did all of that with a modicum of success too. There were just too many fouls mixed in for Ally King, Sullivan Kessler, Grace Kreischer (two each) and Mataya Bireley (three). It probably gave Blazer coach Mike Lortie a migraine as he watched foul after foul lead to a Blackhawk Christian parade to the free throw line.
But still, I liked it.
Eastside proved a point. It was not afraid to attack its opponent and it wasn’t going to give Blackhawk Christian anything easy. It took until the 1:07 mark of the first quarter when Hailee Kline scored the first Blackhawk Christian field goal.
Meanwhile, Eastside was able to flex some depth. When Bireley checked into the game less than three minutes in as the first player off the bench, she immediately was successful stealing the ball off the dribble before converting with a free throw on the other end.
That is a tempo and momentum setting play.
While the Blazers attacked, Blackhawk Christian was forced into a bit of a hesitant game offensively. Can you blame it? Is there anything more unnerving than a team who just doesn’t care if they rack up foul and won’t change their aggression?
Again, Lortie probably would have preferred that it went a different way. With three starters on the bench, especially with some of Kreischer’s standout interior defense, things were too close when Eastside trailed 15-13 at halftime.
As the Blazers went four deep on their bench and the Braves pulled ahead at the break, maybe there was a false comfort. But all it meant was that Eastside was going to storm back with those players who sat in the first half.
It only took a minute for the Blazers to tie it up and come the 3:09 mark of the third, they took over for good. Skye Kessler’s dribble drive opened up Sullivan for a corner three for the 19-16 lead and then two smothering defensive efforts forced the Braves into a quick shot and a travel. The Braves kept pushing – to their credit – but when Kreischer rebounded her own miss and scored on a second chance in the closing seconds of the third, things were just all coming up Eastside.
That aggression of the first half set the tempo and it made the Braves know that Eastside wasn’t going to back down.
So does that make the instant aggression good or bad? I guess it does depend on how the opponent responds. It will keep depending on that throughout the season. There are plenty of opponents in the NECC that Eastside can’t toy with, that it can’t afford to lose so many starters against. But Tuesday night, it worked, because Blackhawk Christian hesitated in the second half at the threat of Eastside’s battering ram tendencies.
When Sullivan Kessler hit a three pointer at the 4:55 mark of the fourth quarter to pull ahead 28-25, the Blazers had the game capped. From there, they made Blackhawk Christian’s offense work. Eastside was beating the Braves to spots, attacking the boards and protecting the rim. As its aggression becomes more educated, there is no doubt that it will only be construed as good.
For their sake though, they will want to get there sooner than later.
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