Washington obliterates Oskaloosa

Washington girls basketball put on a defensive masterclass in an out of conference home clash against Oskaloosa on Saturday. One game after conceding 62 points in a Southeast Conference loss to Keokuk - the most they have allowed in a game this season - the Demons gave up just 21 in a 43-21 win over Oskaloosa.

“After that loss from Keokuk I thought that we really just needed to bounce back as a team and I felt like we did that tonight,” sophomore Reagan Miller said. “Our halfcourt defense was awesome.”

Oskaloosa’s total is the fewest points Washington has allowed in a game so far this season, one less than a 44-22 win over Mt. Pleasant on Dec. 19. Washington surrendered just three points in the third quarter to pull away for its eighth win of the campaign.

The Demons only logged seven steals, but made a wall outside of the paint that a smaller Oskaloosa side was unable to penetrate. Oskaloosa was stuck at 15 points from the 5:25 mark of the third quarter until the 4:40 mark of the fourth.

“Our defensive intensity was really good, especially playing a back-to-back,” Washington coach Colin Mulford said. “We weren’t as prepared as obviously you would want to be going into a game with just an hour practice before today. I felt like our full court was good, but half court I felt like was great. The girls just did a great job.”

The Demons defensive activity shut down any chance of an Oskaloosa comeback, and a strong shooting night led by Miller propelled Washington to a comfortable win. Miller came off the bench scored 14 points on 5 of 6 shooting from the field, including 4 of 5 from beyond the arc. She also chipped in four rebounds.

“She’s very capable, she knows that,” Mulford said. “We talk to her about that all the time about how she needs to be more aggressive when she’s shooting the ball. But she did a really good job tonight of taking shots when she was open.”

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Adalyn Long was the only other Washington player in double figures with 10 points. The senior was able to drive past Oskaloosa defenders with ease and earn trips to the free throw line, where she finished 3 of 5.

The Demons shot 44.1% from the field and went 8 of 19 from 3-point range. Four of the team’s five starters each hit a 3. Miller and Oaklee Sobaski connected from deep on back-to-back trips in the second quarter to counter a circus 3-pointer at the end of the shot clock by Oskaloosa’s Naomi Cole that cut Washington’s lead to 17-12.

“It feels really good, especially when multiple girls have the ball going in the hoop,” Mulford said. “When it’s just one, the other team can kind of just key in on them, but when everyone is capable of making shots it makes it a lot harder for them.”

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Washington completely flipped the script one day after a 62-32 loss to Keokuk on Friday. The Chiefs got out to a 20-7 lead and held Washington to single digits in all four quarters.

Washington lost the turnover battle 16-7 and was beaten on the boards 27-22. The Demons were far from the mark they achieved against Oskaloosa and shot just 30.8% from the field, including 1 of 19 from 3.

Keokuk was in complete opposite form shooting the basketball. The Chiefs went a whopping 50% from 3 and were led by 25 points from senior Kendra Boatman and 20 from Elizabeth Mason.

Adalyn Long scored 15 points and was the only Washington player in double figures. Addison Miller finished with six points, five rebounds and two assists.

Washington (8-5, 3-3 SEC) will next face Tipton away from home Monday before it plays host to Fairfield as part of a double header. Tipoff for the girls game is set for 6 p.m. and will be streamed on the Southeast Iowa Live YouTube and Facebook pages.

Washington’s game against Tipton tipped off before press time Monday.