If you only get to have the lead one time, the end of the game is a good time. The No. 6 Malcolm girls’ basketball team pulled off what its coach called a “Christmas miracle” with a 43-42 come-from-behind win over Louisville on Dec. 22 in Malcolm.
After trailing for nearly 29 minutes, the Clippers took the lead with 11 seconds left in the game when Alyssa Fortik hit Emma Brown in stride and the sophomore laid it in for the game winner.
Louisville got on the board first in a defense-heavy first quarter and built a four-point lead by halftime. By the end of the third period, the Lions were up by nine.
“I didn’t have a great feeling about this game going in,” Malcolm head coach Andy Klepper said. “They have talented players that create matchup issues for us.”
As the Clippers struggled to make shots, the Louisville guards took care of the ball and handled Malcolm’s patented full court press.
“Our press typically creates a lot of turnovers that turn into scoring opportunities,” Klepper said. “They handled it well and forced us to find points in our half-court offense.”
Malcolm turned up the defensive intensity in the fourth quarter and began to chip away at the Louisville lead. Joslyn Small got a steal that she converted into a layup to make it a two-point game.
“That was a big play,” Klepper said. “Our guards stepped up and got it done when we needed it most.”
With 26 seconds remaining in the game, Ashlynn Sehi went to the line with a chance to tie the game. After she made the first of two free throws, Louisville coach Wally Johnson took a timeout to ice her. It worked.
“We had what we wanted,” Klepper said. “Ashlynn is exactly who I want at the line in that situation. It just didn’t fall.”
Down by one, Malcolm fouled Avery Heilig to stop the clock. The junior missed the front end of a one-in-one that Sehi rebounded and delivered to Fortik. The sophomore point guard spotted Brown running ahead of the Louisville defenders and connected with her to put the Clippers up by a point.
“I thought about taking a timeout when Ashlynn got the rebound,” Klepper said. “I’m glad I didn’t as it couldn’t have worked out any better.”
Louisville had one final chance as they brought the ball back up the floor and got it to Heilig who drove inside and attempted a left-handed layup that fell short as the buzzer sounded.
Brown finished with 15 points, including hitting 5-of-6 from the line. Fortik scored nine of her 11 points in the second half.
Malcolm (6-0) takes its undefeated record into this week’s Malcolm Boosters’ Winter Classic. The Clippers will see a pair of tough opponents including Monday’s game against Oakland-Craig (5-3) before they face No. 3 Centennial (5-0) on Wednesday night.
“We’re undefeated and have yet to play our best basketball,” Klepper said. “We will definitely need to play well to win these two.”
