Girls basketball playoffs: McBride helps Syracuse fly into 6A semifinals | News, Sports, Jobs

SALT LAKE CITY — Syracuse High senior ahead Rachel McBride was 3 years outdated, nonetheless a number of years from grade faculty, the final time the Titans superior out of the quarterfinals of a women basketball event.

When McBride unfold her 6-foot-4 wingspan huge on protection late within the second quarter in opposition to Copper Hills, she appeared to be embracing Syracuse’s first journey to the semifinals since 2012.

The No. 2 Titans rode a key run in that second stanza and didn’t let up after the break, punching a ticket to the semis with a dominant, 55-38 victory over the No. 7 Grizzlies within the 6A playoffs Wednesday on the Huntsman Center.

Syracuse (19-5) led 17-15 halfway via the second interval earlier than closing the half on an 11-4 run, taking a 28-19 edge into the locker room.

McBride made three free throws and a jumper from the left angle through the run, and netted seven factors within the second quarter general.

“I was a little nervous, but I got over it. I didn’t want this to be my last game, so I gave all my effort. Being confident and playing through the nerves helped me to not be too scared,” McBride stated. “Coming in here can be scary … different atmosphere. Trusting myself and my teammates was important.”

She had a monster first half, with 12 factors, six rebounds, two blocks, a triple and three of 4 from the free-throw line. McBride wrapped the sport with 19 factors and 9 boards.

“I found myself open and going strong to the hole; got to the free-throw line and knocked some shots down,” McBride stated. I instructed myself to do my job and discover methods to contribute to the win.

“Defense generates offense; I pride myself on defense … move my feet and get stops. Big-time blocks are fun. They generate energy and it leads to offense and gets us buckets,” McBride stated after recording two blocks within the sport.

Syracuse gained the third quarter 10-6 and the ultimate body 17-13, constructing the lead at each alternative.

“They did some good things against our zone early, so we switched it up a bit. It flustered them in the second quarter and we pulled away,” Syracuse coach Braden Hamblin stated.

Senior level guard Maylee Anderson scored 14 factors for the Titans, preventing via a Copper Hills protection designed to thwart her and restrict her touches.

“Their game plan was to not let Maylee get the ball. They face-guarded her as soon as they possibly could, but she managed it well,” Hamblin stated. “She played off-ball and we used Zaydie (Peterson) and Avery (King) to bring the ball up.”

The Grizzlies (15-9) shot 30% from the sector within the first half and it acquired worse from there; the Titans held them to twenty-eight% for the sport.

“We felt like this was a good matchup for us. We thought we could hamper them a little bit defensively and attack certain aspects of their defense as well,” Hamblin stated. “We preach one shot and executed, and did an important job of rebounding the basketball. When you don’t see a shot go in … they acquired pissed off with their taking pictures.

“We had an advantage down low. Our bigs played well tonight and we were consistent, and we took care of the ball with only seven turnovers,” Hamblin stated.

Senior middle Olivia Sorenson scored six factors and grabbed 5 rebounds, whereas freshman middle Mindy McNeill got here off the bench and added six factors for Syracuse. King completed with six factors and 4 steals.

Junior guard Abby Bush paced the Grizzlies with 19 factors and 6 rebounds.

The Titans superior for one more crack at No. 6 Bingham (17-8) in Thursday’s semifinals, a crew they narrowly misplaced to previous to their Region 1 championship marketing campaign.

“It’s exciting to play (Bingham); we played them earlier in the season and I feel like we definitely left things on the court we can fix. It should be a good one,” McBride stated.

Hamblin was completely satisfied to reward his crew following the sport, saying: “Credit to these girls for their hard work and determination. They executed in a big-time environment. I’m really proud of them.”