Second-ranked Raiders need time to get back in groove, roll past Chargers once they find rhythm

QUINCY — Fresh off a much-needed four-day break following an 11-day gauntlet that saw it face five state-ranked teams, the Quincy Notre Dame girls basketball team was eager to get off to a good start Thursday night against Illini West.

A little too eager, as it turned out.

“We didn’t start out the best,” admitted guard Sage Stratton. “We were rushing our shots a little bit. We can’t just throw up the first shot we get. We need to run our offense because that’s what we’re good at. That’s what Lady Raider basketball is.”

To prove that point, Stratton scored 17 of her game-high 24 points in the second quarter to help QND overcome the sluggish start to take a 40-17 halftime lead and cruise to a 63-31 victory over Illini West in The Pit.

The Raiders, ranked second in the Class 3A poll, improved to 20-2. It marked the 18^th time in Eric Orne’s 21 seasons as head coach they have reached the 20-win plateau.

All it took was for QND to settle into its offense.

Patience allowed the hosts to make 12 of 22 field goal attempts combined in the middle two periods, including 5 of 9 from 3-point range, and they went 14 of 15 from the free-throw line during that stretch to pull away.

“I thought we played, I don’t know, a little too casual at times, not the high intensity that I’m used to with this team,” Orne said. “I thought we got out of rhythm. We’re very much a system team, and I thought we tried to do a little too much instead of letting the system work for us.

“We got a lot of better looks and knocked down a lot of shots in the second quarter in rhythm, and that was the big key for us in really separating from Illini West.”

That, along with a tenacious defensive effort that forced the Chargers into 14 turnovers in the first half and 20 through three quarters before the final period was played with a running clock.

“We definitely amped it up on defense, for sure,” Stratton said. “We got those steals and forced turnovers. That’s something we love to do.”

Illini West only trailed 16-6 after the first quarter despite turning the ball over seven times against QND’s full-court pressure and getting off just eight shots, making two.

The score could have been closer had the Chargers not also missed six of eight free throw attempts in the period.

“We knew coming in they were going to press us, and I thought we did a good job of breaking the press early,” Illini West coach Grant Suprenant said. “But we got sped up in the half-court. We weren’t meeting our passes, and they got some easy steals and easy baskets. And we missed some shots.

“Still, if we make some of those free throws, maybe we cut the lead to 16-10 or 16-12 at the end of the first quarter.”

Instead, Illini West dug itself an even bigger hole by managing just one field goal during the opening five minutes of the second quarter. Stratton scored 12 points during that stretch, with seven of those coming from the line, where the Raiders were good on 10 of 11 attempts in the period.

The Raiders put the game away by scoring the opening nine points in the third quarter, the last on a 3-pointer from the right corner by Jenna Durst. They gained their biggest lead at 57-22 after back-to-back 3-pointers from Stratton and Marie Eversman, who finished with nine points.

QND, which plays Bloomington Central Catholic on Saturday, led 59-27 after three quarters. The Raiders outscored the Chargers 24-6 from behind the arc.

“It’s all part of the process,” Orne said. “I know the girls are wanting to get to that next level, and sometimes you just need to see the game and let it happen instead of forcing it.”

Reagan Reed scored 16 points for Illini West, which went 7 of 18 from the free-throw line and finished with 21 turnovers. The Chargers (12-12) face another stern test Saturday against Brown County.

“We’ve got to find a little more grit,” Suprenant said. “We have to focus on taking care of the basketball. Turnovers have been our Achilles heel all year. We can’t continue to keep making the same mistakes.”