Energetic and efficient, Blue Devils open season by deflating Crimsons with defense

QUINCY — At the time the Quincy High School girls basketball players went into the locker room to prepare for their varsity tilt, enough of a crowd had filtered into the QHS gym for them to know it might get a little loud.

When they re-emerged, the Blue Devils had to do a double-take.

The gym was officially packed with nary a seat to be found.

“I wasn’t really nervous,” junior guard Madelyn Hamby said. “Then we all came out and looked at each other and were like, ‘Oh, wow.’ I think it got us more excited knowing there was a huge crowd there.”

For some, it tempered the nerves, but they were still present.

“I’ve never played in front of that big of a crowd before,” senior forward Kate Mettemeyer said. “The vibe was kind of frightening, but also very exciting to see the support Quincy has. You see it at the boys games and at the football games, so it’s great to see it at the girls basketball game.”

The kind of effort that led to a 62-20 victory over Jacksonville in the season opener is what will bring the crowd back, too.

The Blue Devils scored the game’s first 18 points, didn’t allow a field goal until 4:01 remained in the first half and saw seven of their eight players get into the scoring column. Quincy dished out 20 assists on 26 field goals and swiped 15 steals as part of forcing more than 25 turnovers.

“I thought things went well and we really had the energy,” freshman guard Khloe Nicholson said.

Credit the crowd for helping sustain that.

“When you score or you make a good play, you can feel the floor rumbling,” Mettemeyer said.

It happened quite often.

Sophomore guard Myley Longcor led the Blue Devils with 15 points and six rebounds, while sophomore forward Jada Brown had 14 points, six rebounds, six assists and two blocked shot and Hamby finished with 14 points and four assists.

“They’re a young group, but they’re a fun group,” QHS coach Brad Dance said. “They share the ball well. One of the things we talk about all the time is I don’t want one person holding the ball or having it stick with anybody. They do a good job of sharing the basketball. As long as that continues, we know it won’t be just any one person who carries us.”

That should inspire big crowds to fill the home gym.

“Great crowd, great environment,” Dance said. “I told the girls, ‘You’re going to have to sustain this type of energy — win or lose — for people to come.’”