Girls Basketball: Strong defense sparks turnaround for Upper Arlington Golden Bears
Upper Arlington girls basketball coach John Wanke doesn’t have to think for long about why the Golden Bears matched their win total from last year within their first four games this season.
“Defense is where it’s begun and ended,” Wanke said.
More intense practices under the former Kettering Alter and Miami University standout have translated into a grittier defensive effort on game nights, as UA allowed an average of 35.4 points through 11 games.
That figure was skewed by a 55-29 loss at New Albany on Nov. 23, but other than that the Bears had given up more than 40 points only once entering a Jan. 7 game against visiting Dublin Coffman.
UA entered that matchup at 8-3 overall and 3-1 in the OCC-Central Division after going 3-14 a year ago, when it allowed 56.7 points per game and 60 or more four times, all losses.
“We’re doing all the little things that matter,” Wanke said. “We’re talking. We’re jumping on the flight of the ball, we’re really doing a good job pressuring the ball and help-side has been pretty good as well. We like to think of defense through the lens of consecutive stops, so (the question is) are we getting three or four consecutive stops?
“Basketball is a game of runs, and we’ve been able to (make stops) up to this point. Of all the things I’m most proud of in a short amount of time, it’s been defense.”
Wanke said ball pressure has started with point guard Quinn Buttermore, a sophomore and first-year starter, but emphasized that everyone has played prominent parts.
UA started the season with a 39-30 win over Grove City on Nov. 20, and even in consecutive losses to Watterson on Dec. 10 and Olentangy Liberty on Dec. 13 — the former in overtime — the Bears allowed 38 and 40 points, respectively.
Kate Leach, a senior center, leads the team in the paint along with forwards Greta Lenhart (junior) and Evie Sanford (senior).
“You practice how you play. Picking up the effort in practice has translated really well into games,” Leach said. “It’s very different (than last year) for me. I wasn’t expected to catch the ball in the block. I usually stood in the corner. I did get a decent amount of rebounds, but there’s a different expectation this year from that position.”
Senior guard Alyssa Gest said energy has been a key in both practices and games.
“In practice, (Wanke) pushes us the whole two hours and we are just used to moving with each other,” said Gest, whose 11.4 points per game through 11 games were second on the team to Ceylone Reighard-Brooks’ 13.3. “He definitely has brought us to one goal (and) one focus, doing everything we can not to let the other team score.”
Reighard-Brooks, a junior guard, had 10 double-digit scoring games through 11 contests, including a career-high 22 points Jan. 1 in a 59-31 win over Alpharetta (Georgia) Denmark in the Indian Rocks Beach Division final of the Tampa Bay Christmas Invitational.
“I definitely had to pick up my offense from last year since some of our scorers (graduated). It’s exciting,” Reighard-Brooks said. “I’ve had to look to score more. I think our team knows how to set each other up, too. We find great shots over good shots. That’s something (Wanke) always says.”
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This article originally appeared on ThisWeek: Girls Basketball: Strong defense sparks turnaround for Upper Arlington
