Clipper girls stay unbeaten

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When Malcolm, along with all other Lancaster County schools, had to wait an extra two-and-a-half weeks to start practices and games, one had to wonder how quickly the teams would come out of the gates. While not every win has been pretty, the fact that the Malcolm girls are undefeated entering the 2021 portion of their season is reason for optimism.

“We’ve been able to find ways to win even when we hadn’t practiced much and weren’t always playing our best,” Malcolm head coach Andy Klepper said. “That built up confidence while we were working out the kinks.”

Two fast starts in the Clippers’ holiday tournament games helped the team cruise to a pair of wins over some solid competition. Malcolm opened the event Dec. 28 with a 59-40 win over Oakland-Craig before returning to their home court two days later to knock off No. 3 Centennial 50-38.

In both games, No. 6 Malcolm used defensive intensity and its full-court press to make life miserable for its opponents. Against the Knights, the Clippers jumped out to a 19-10 first quarter lead while they held a seven-point lead over the Broncos after the opening frame.

“Getting the lead early helps us out in a lot of ways,” Klepper said. “That cushion gives us a chance to play more girls and it helps keep our starters fresh.

“In both games, I thought our opponents got tired in the first half, and we did a good job taking advantage.”

The Clippers used a nine-player rotation in both games.

Joslyn Small had a strong tournament. The senior guard scored 24 points in the two games and shared the team high score with 17 points against Centennial.

“Jos stepped up big time, especially in the Centennial game,” Klepper said. “We knew she had it in her, and we’ve been waiting for those shots to fall.”

Alyssa Fortik also had 17 against the Broncos. The sophomore point guard hit three from beyond the arc, including a halftime buzzer beater from 40 feet out that put Malcolm up 11 going into the break.

“Alyssa has really high expectations of herself,” Klepper said. “It’s good to see her playing with more confidence.”

Diamond Sedlak led the Clippers in scoring against Oakland-Craig as the sophomore had 13 points including a pair from long range.

Entering the new year, free throws will be a point of emphasis for the Clippers who went just 12-of-27 from the line against Centennial.

“That was a big negative in an otherwise positive game,” Klepper said. “The time is going to come when we’ll need those to fall. It’s something we’ll work hard on this week.”

It will be a busy week for Malcolm (8-0) as they play three games in three days. The Clippers travel to Palmyra (0-7) Thursday, Jan. 7, before returning home to host Milford (4-5). Malcolm will travel to Broken Bow Saturday for an early afternoon tilt against No. 10 North Central (7-2) in the Nebraska Girls’ Basketball Showcase. North Central won the Class C2 state championship in 2018.

“We know Milford will be tough,” Klepper said. “They always play us close, and they’re better than their record indicates.

“North Central is a quality program that we can’t take for granted. It will be our third game in about 42 hours. I told our girls this stretch could be a good test for when we hopefully have to play three games in three days in March.”