Mustangs, Chargers to renew acquaintances once again, this time for title of CSE Classic

CAMP POINT, Ill. — Here we go with round three.

Caroline Knox did her part to make it happen with two clutch free throws. The Illini West girls basketball team’s defense held up its end of the equation. Now, two state-ranked foes will meet for the third time in 17 days and the second time with a championship at stake.

Unity, ranked fifth in the latest Class 1A state poll, and Illini West, ranked third in Class 2A, are scheduled to square off at 7:30 p.m. Saturday in the championship game of the CSE Classic. Both navigated challenging semifinal matchups Thursday night at Central’s old gym to create the rematch.

“It’s only going to make us better to face Illini West again,” Unity coach Brad Begeman said  after the Mustangs beat Brown County 46-45 in the first semifinal. “We’re going to watch film (Friday) and talk about some things. If we show up to play, it will be a good game. They are extremely tough to guard and tough to defend.”

The Chargers won the first two meetings, beating the Mustangs 66-51 on December 30 in the championship game of the Beardstown Lady Tiger Classic and picking up a 56-52 victory January 5 in Carthage.

“They’re going to be ready to go, and so are we,” Illini West coach Grant Surprenant said after the Chargers upended Central-Southeastern 48-32 in Thursday’s other semifinal. “The team that makes the adjustments from the second game and carries it over to the third game will put themselves in position to be successful.”

Knox calmly sinks free throws and Hornets

Trailing by as many as six points on two separate occasions in the fourth quarter, Brown County made a charge when it forced Unity to turn the ball over three times in a six-possession span. All three miscues led to points as the Hornets’ Gabby McGath scored on back-to-back possession and Klare Flynn made 2 of 4 free throws to trim the deficit to 41-40 with 2:24 to play.

Katey Flynn gave Brown County the lead when she buried a 3-pointer from the right wing with 1:40 to go. She extended the advantage to 45-41 by making two free throws with 53.7 seconds remaining.

The Mustangs (18-3) responded with tenacity. A pair of offensive rebounds led to Ashlynn Arnsman making a 3-pointer from the right wing with 24 seconds to play to make it a one-point game.

“Some people probably didn’t think we were going to come back the way the score was going, but I told the girls you never give in and you never give up,” Begeman said. “That’s the one thing I like about this team. They refuse to give up.”

Unity fouled Brown County’s Kaci McKeon with 15.2 seconds remaining, but she missed the front end of a 1-and-1. After taking a timeout with 6.3 seconds to play, the Mustangs got the ball to Caroline Knox, who was fouled driving to the basket with 3.7 seconds left.

Knox made the first free throw, and following a timeout by Brown County coach David Phelps, she sank the second one for a 46-45 lead.

Both teams took timeouts before the final inbounds play, but Brown County was unable to get into the frontcourt and get a good look before time expired.

“We’re so similar that their strengths are our strengths, too,” Begeman said. “We counteract each other and make it so tough on each other. It comes down to whoever is going to step up and make the plays. I think we did that when it mattered.”

Arnsman led the Mustangs with 13 points, while Kyra Carothers added 12 points. The Flynn twins each had 12 points for the Hornets, while McKeon added 10 points.

Chargers’ defense shuts door on Panthers

The ability to create scoring opportunities off the dribble and penetrate the lane enabled Central-Southeastern to control its semifinal matchup for 2½ quarters.

At that moment, the gaps closed quicker and everything changed.

Trailing 26-20 after the Panthers’ Lauren Miller hit a 3-pointer from the left wing with 3:55 to go in the third quarter, the Chargers (21-1) tied the game at 30 by the start of the fourth quarter and allowed just two points over the final eight minutes.

“In the first half, we were a step slow,” Surprenant said. “In the second half, we did a much better job of when they were attacking the gaps that we stopped the ball and made them shoot jump shots. The other thing was we didn’t foul as much.”

The Panthers scored their final seven points of the first half from the free-throw line and led 18-16 at halftime. They didn’t give up the lead until Illini West’s Caydee Kirkham turned a steal into a layup with 40 seconds remaining in the third quarter for a 30-28 lead.

Miller’s two free throws tied the game at 30 with 3.8 seconds to go in the third quarter, but Reagan Reed’s putback on the first possession of the fourth quarter gave Illini West the lead for good. Miller’s runner in the lane with 6:12 to play was Central-Southeastern’s only field goal of the fourth quarter.

The Panthers went scoreless thereafter.

“The tempo and style of play in the second half was much more in our favor,” Surprenant said.

The offensive efficiency improved, too. The Chargers made five of their final seven shots and went 9 of 13 from the field (69.2 percent) in the second half.

“We talked at timeouts in the huddle that we need to make the extra pass and be shot ready,” Surprenant said.

Kirkham led the Chargers with 14 points and Reed added 12 points, while Miller led the Panthers with 15 points.