Southern Ohio Sports Authority is presented by OhioHealth.
THE PLAINS — The Athens County rivalry between Athens and Alexander brought out both communities on Thursday and each were treated to instant classic inside McAfee Gymnasium.
With the stands jam-packed, Quinn Banks made sure all eyes were on her.
The junior forward put the Bulldogs on her back, posting a double-double of 24 points and 12 rebounds to keep her team undefeated on the season with a 49-37 victory over the Spartans in TVC-Ohio action.
CREDIT: Tanner Wright/SOSA
“We did a lot of film study on Alexander. Studied who their best players were, their out-of-bounds plays and key plays they like to run,” Athens’ Ella Chapman said. “We really stressed ball pressure. That was a huge part of the game and I thought we played really well defensively. The crowd was awesome, and it definitely gave us some early nerves, but we got it together and used that energy.”
Banks was spectacular as she sliced and diced through the Spartans’ defense. But Chapman and Alexis Koopal provided plenty of support for their teammate as well.
Knocking down timely shots and hitting their free throws, they each added 11 points, combining with Banks to score 46 of the team’s 49 points on the night.
PHOTOS: Images from Athens’ win over Alexander
Koopal opened the game with the first three points for Athens (7-0, 4-0 TVC), and then it was all Banks. She scored the next seven for the Bulldogs, matching the Spartans (4-2, 3-1 TVC) bucket-for-bucket to keep Athens ahead 10-9 after the first quarter.
Later tied at 15-15 in the second, Banks connected inside and hit a corner triple for a personal 5-0 run that put the Bulldogs up 20-15 at halftime.
That small momentum swing going into the break was exactly what Athens needed. Chapman and Banks connected from the field while Koopal and Banks each hit two free throws to open the third with an 8-0 run, pushing the lead to 28-15.
“We like to run and gun and be fast with everything we do,” Athens coach Phil Koska said. “We worked on the zone and it took us a minute to adjust to that. But we finally did.”
Banks later notched a rebound and putback that extended the lead to 34-22, but the Spartans weren’t done fighting as buckets from Karah Allison and Lily Rider eroded the lead to eight points.
But Banks and Brystol Stump connected on back-to-back triples, extending the lead back into double digits at 40-26 and the Bulldogs rode that wave of momentum across the finish line.
“Our communication was really good. We did a good job of switching defensively and calling out where the ball was going,” Banks said. “We knew Alexander had some good shooters on the team, but we were staying out and closing the gap on their shooters.
“Hitting those 3’s was huge and exactly what we needed when they got it to single digits in the third. The score was closer than we planned it to be, but we got a huge conference win.”
While Banks’ numbers led the Bulldogs, Alexander was led by Rider, who finished the night with 16 points.
Athens returns to action on Monday in non-league play at Waterford while Alexander aims to rebound on Friday, hosting Crooksville.
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