Defense rules the day as St. Gertrude defeats Mills Godwin

If defense is your thing, you would have dearly loved all 32 minutes of St. Gertrude’s 42-36 victory over Mills Godwin Friday night.

While points were scarce, a turnoff, perhaps, for those who revel in no-holds-barred, run-and-gun basketball, the intensity, intentionality, and passion with which both teams competed created a dramatic narrative that had the outcome in doubt until the visiting Gators scored twice on skillfully crafted back-door collaborations in the closing minute.

“When we played them last time, we weren’t as aggressive on shooters as we should have been,” said SG coach Robyn D’Onofrio of the Gators’ 54-53 loss to Godwin on a last-second shot on January 7. “We really wanted to get a hand in the face of shooters to at least disrupt.

“That in combination with our (overall) defensive effort probably changed the outcome tonight.”

The Gators harried Godwin into 11-for-44 shooting and 15 turnovers.

The Eagles were no less focused or bent on contesting every pass and shot or contesting every rebound and 50-50 ball.

They forced St. Gertrude into 15-for-38 shooting and 14 turnovers and finished with a 31-26 rebounding edge.

“(Godwin coach) Hannah (Livermon) coaches a great team,” said D’Onofrio. “They’re very scrappy and disciplined. When we played them at our place, they were very aggressive and put on a lot of ball pressure. 

“I wasn’t surprised by their pressure at all. The low scoring was tough for us to figure out because we’re used to playing with a (35-second) shot clock. 

“This was a true test of our ability to listen and follow directions. It was a little different coaching strategy than we might have if were using a shot clock.”

From the opening tip, it was abundantly apparent that defense would be the order of the day.

The Eagles forced turnovers on St. Gertrude’s first three possessions but could convert only one because the Gators reacted quickly and disrupted the home team’s offensive rhythm.

Godwin’s defense was so formidable that the Gators could not launch a shot until the 3:58 mark in the first quarter.

Then, they found an opening here and there, and Mady D’Onofrio’s 3-pointer at 0:34 gave them a 7-3 lead at the quarter which they extended (thanks to Stella Shropshire’s two 3-pointers) to a 20-11 lead at the half.

“We worked a lot on help-side rotations in practice,” said Lexi Gillikin, a 6-0 senior center. “We really focused on being there and helping the helper. We accomplished that. 

“We trapped them baseline, which made it hard for them to reverse the ball for an open 3-pointer. That’s what they killed us on last time: a bunch of 3s.”

Gillikin finished with 15 points, most from close range after taking entry passes and using adroit footwork to weave her way to the hoop.

“Step in. Call for the ball. Hopefully my teammates get it to me,” Gillikin said. “I work with them too. They get me the ball, but I give it to them too. 

“It’s all about teamwork and jelling as one.”

The pace of action intensified in the third quarter.

On the strength of Gillikin’s stickback and transition layup off D’Onofrio’s assist and a 3-point play by D’Onofrio (11 points), the Gators held a 27-13 lead two minutes in.

Livermon’s crew responded quickly and used an 9-3 run punctuated by Bella Ross’s 3-pointer from the left wing at 1:20 to close to 30-22 entering the fourth.

The Eagles, with Ariana Crowley (13 points) running the show, were now playing with a sense of urgency.

Pressing full court with impunity, they cut their deficit to five points on three occasions, the last when Fiona Haas (12 points) scored from the paint off a Mia Fairman assist 2:32 from the end.

“We had to work mostly on not dribbling the ball,” said Shropshire, a 5-9 senior, of navigating the press. “We have a play called fast-break-off-the-make that we do a lot during practice where we (push the ball) up the floor and use a fast pace rather than setting ourselves and thinking about dribbling immediately. It’s more passing and getting up the court.”

For the Gators, then, composure amidst the cacophony of action was essential.

“We had to keep each other up and keep the energy high,” Shropshire said. “We couldn’t let (the moment) get into our heads.”

It didn’t, of course.

At 0:59, D’Onofrio slipped behind the defense, took a pass from Gillikin, and banked in a layup.

With 20 seconds remaining, this time it was Gillikin who found the opening, took D’Onofrio’s pass, and hit a layup to seal the victory.

“I told the girls after the game that they’re peaking,” said D’Onofrio, the coach. “They’re really coming together at the right time.”