In the girls city semifinals, it was blowout city.
But even if the 1,500 fans at the UIC Pavilion didn’t get to see two competitive Public League games, at least they got three outstanding individual performances for their money.
In No. 4 Young’s 77-41 dismantling of Washington, flashy 5-foot-5-inch point guard Natasha Pointer thrilled with some shake-and-bake moves and a couple of scoop layups on her way to 22 points, eight rebounds, five assists and five steals.
And in No. 5 Marshall’s 66-34 defeat of No. 20 Morgan Park, 5-7 guard Sabrina Minter had 30 points and eight rebounds and 5-10 forward Kourtney Walton had 20 points and 19 rebounds.
“We really count on those two both offensively and defensively,” Marshall coach Dorothy Gaters said. “We just want the rest of the kids to help out.”
The two blowouts set up a Young-Marshall matchup for the city championship–and a trip Downstate–at 7 p.m. Monday at the Pavilion. It will be Marshall’s 20th consecutive appearance in the title game, with 17 championships under its belt.
“It’s going to come down to our guards against theirs,” Gaters said. “We’ve got to find a way to stop Pointer so she doesn’t go hog wild on us.”
Marshall’s victory Friday turned sloppy after the Commandos stifled Morgan Park early. Neither team could hold on to the ball, combining for 58 turnovers (40 by Marshall), and Morgan Park shot just 11 of 61 (18 percent). The Mustangs (27-4) were 1 of 15 in the first quarter and didn’t score until 17 seconds were left in the period.
“We had our opportunities, but we couldn’t get the shots to fall,” said Morgan Park coach Zelda Walker, whose team lost for the first time since Christmas.
Marshall (24-5) led the entire game and by at least 20 most of the final three quarters.
In the first game, Young (25-3) easily disposed of Washington (21-10), leading by at least 30 points through most of the second half. Pointer took over early and showed some flash once the victory was in hand.
“If she gave it up, we didn’t want her to get it back, but we couldn’t keep it out of her hands,” said Washington coach Willie Byrd. “We just didn’t have the talent to match up.”
Young coach Arthur Penny said Pointer’s all-around performance shows how she has matured. “She’s not being a ball hog,” Penny said. “That shows a lot of leadership.”
