In a de facto Big Eight girls basketball conference championship game, Sun Prairie West struggled with turnovers and Verona junior Taylor Stremlow in an 86-63 loss.
Tuesday, Jan. 24 has been circled on the Sun Prairie West girls basketball team’s calendar all season long. It marked another shot at Verona, the No. 6 ranked team in Division 1 in the most recent wissports.net coaches poll. In the first meeting of these Big Eight conference rivals at Verona High School back in late November, it was the Wildcats that walked away with a slim 50-46 victory.
Revenge was not in the cards for the Wolves on Tuesday. Verona junior Taylor Stremlow, a University of Iowa women’s basketball commit, was slowed by a knee injury the first time these teams met. She was at full strength in the rematch, and it showed as she piled up steals and led the game in scoring with 34 points. She, combined with 31 points from fellow junior Reagan Briggs, led Verona to an 86-63 victory.
Verona came out in a full-court press and piled up turnovers in a hurry as Sun Prairie West struggled to find open passing lanes. Still, the game remained tight early thanks to the hard work of Sun Prairie West senior guard Antionique Auston. She scored seven of West’s first nine points as the Wolves went shot-for-shot with the Wildcats.
Sun Prairie West senior Antionique Auston led the Wolves in scoring with 28 points in a home loss to Verona on Tuesday, Jan. 24.
Stremlow and Briggs decided that was enough, and stepped on the gas. Stremlow turned a steal into a bucket and ripped away an offensive rebound for another to kickstart a 15-4 Verona run. Briggs was instrumental as well, nailing two of her eventual five three point baskets to add fuel to the flame.
Sun Prairie West’s trouble with turnovers, coupled with Verona’s lethal fast break attack, caused that gap to widen even further. Briggs’ third triple of the game would make it a 41-19 lead for Verona, prompting a timeout from West with about five minutes left in the first half.
The break in the action sparked something inside the Wolves to finish out the half. West senior guard Marie Outlay came out firing by hitting a three point shot and burying a layup. This started a 7-0 run for West. Verona would respond in kind, hitting a pair of threes to maintain a 47-27 lead heading into the halftime break.
Sun Prairie West senior Marie Outlay scored 22 points in a home loss to Verona on Tuesday, Jan. 24.
Auston was again West’s offensive lifeblood in the start of the second half, scoring the Wolves’ first seven points. Unfortunately for West, Verona piled up 12 points of its own in the meantime. Despite a revised defensive game plan that slowed Verona’s hot shooting, there was just no catching the Wildcats.
Trailing 75-42 following further dominance from Stremlow and Briggs, Sun Prairie West chose to battle. The Wolves erupted into an 11-0 run, headlined by five points from Outlay and four from Auston.
It was also a huge night for senior guard @MarieOutlay. Naturally, she turned in another patented steal-n-score in the first half as West struggled to tread water against Verona.
The Wildcats pressed early and forced plenty of turnovers themselves, leading to easy buckets. pic.twitter.com/DuIYsWoDXT
The Wolves’ will to compete was inspiring, but Verona’s deficit had simply grown too large. The Wildcats kept their foot on the gas until about a minute was left in the game, ensuring the eventual 86-63 final score.
Auston led the Wolves in scoring with 28 points, followed by Outlay with 22 and sophomore Makenzie Hawk with seven. Stremlow led Verona and the game with 34, followed by Briggs with 31 and senior forward Paige Lambe with 14.
Sun Prairie West sophomore Makenzie Hawk scored seven points in a home loss to Verona on Tuesday, Jan. 24.Â
The loss ends a nine-game conference winning streak for the Wolves, which now drop to 11-2 in the Big Eight and 13-4 overall. Verona remains in sole possession of first place in the conference standings with a 13-0 record while West slips into a tie with Janesville Craig for second place.
Second place will soon be decided, as well, as Sun Prairie West will travel down to Janesville Craig on Friday, Jan. 27. Sun Prairie West won the first matchup convincingly back in early December at home, 86-54. The Wolves will only have one game next week to recover from this tough two-game stretch, a road game against Madison Memorial on Thursday, Feb. 2.
