Silver Streaks’ perimeter game leads to critical WB6 victory over Blue Devils

GALESBURG, Ill. — It didn’t matter what defense the Quincy High School  girls basketball team employed. Galesburg found a way to beat it.

The Silver Streaks were able to get into gaps and knock down perimeter jumpers, burying nine 3-pointers while securing the top spot in the Western Big 6 Conference with a 55-41 victory Thursday night at John Thiel Gym.

“We didn’t defend the perimeter in the first five or six minutes and after that we got after it pretty good,” Blue Devils coach Brad Dance said. “A couple of our kids were a little shell-shocked at the beginning. We came out and played a little better after the half. 

“(Galesburg) could play a lot more freely than we were because they were shooting wide open shots and making them.”

Quincy (8-2, 3-1 WB6) turned the ball over on its first possession in the contest, and the Streaks went on an 8-2 run from there. With 5:24 left in the first quarter, Blue Devils senior Taylor Fohey completed a three-point play to end the run, and a  pair of free throws from Blue Devils senior Leila Dade with 3:59 left in the first stanza made it 8-7.

Fifty seconds later, Quincy freshman Myley Longcor drained a 3-pointer to tie the game at 10.

Galesburg senior Alexis Edgerson answered with back-to-back 3-pointers as the Streaks led 16-12 at the end of the first quarter. Quincy opened the second quarter with a 6-2 run to tie the game at 18, but Galesburg (9-0, 4-0 WB6) closed the frame with a 6-0 run for a 24-18 advantage at the half.

Streaks senior Kiarra Kilgore drove to the rim and was fouled with 6:58 left in the third to extend Galesburg’s run to 9-0. Dance called a full timeout with 5:42 left in the quarter with his team down 29-20, and the Blue Devils went on a 5-2 run after the stoppage.

The Streaks responded with a 10-3 run to finish out the third quarter.

Galesburg outscored Quincy 14-11 in the final period to seal the victory, and Streaks coach Evan Massey now has 1,001 career wins in 46 seasons. 

The Blue Devils had plenty of opportunities in the paint throughout the evening, but they weren’t able to knock down shots and didn’t have many open looks. 

“I thought we did a good job getting into the post, and our guards didn’t do a bad job,” Dance said. “We’ve just got to do a better job executing once we get the shots we want.”

Massey liked the chemistry he saw from the Silver Streaks.

“They played 1-2-2, 1-3-1 and man-to-man, and I was very happy with the decision making our kids made. We did a good job playing together,” Massey said. “We’ve got good shooters, and they didn’t hesitate to take the open shot. 

“It’s exciting we’re in the position we are now, but there’s a lot of the season left to go.”

Blue Devils freshman Jada Brown and Kilgore both led their teams in scoring with 19 points apiece. Edgerson finished with 15 points — nine came via 3-pointers — and senior Antonia Kisler chipped in 14 points for Galesburg. 

Dade had eight points while Longcor and Fohey contributed seven points each. 

“We’ll be ready to go tomorrow at practice. This one is done and over for now, and we’ll be ready to go on Saturday against Alleman,” Dance said. “We’re sharing the ball, and we’re playing pretty good defense. We just have to keep plugging away and get better offensively every time.”