Carmel’s Jordan Wood walked up the court, happy to receive the basketball in that moment.
It was winning time.
The Michigan State recruit had endured a rocky first half — including shouts of “overrated” from the Deerfield student body — in the Class 3A Grayslake Central Sectional championship game Thursday night.
But Wood scored 19 of her 22 points in the second half and had the ball in her hands as the final seconds ticked off the clock.
“Oh, yes, I heard the ‘overrated’ chants,” Wood said, smiling. “It was kind of hard just having three points at half, but I knew it was coming. I know our team is on a mission, and I had to show (Deerfield).”
With a 68-60 win against second-seeded Deerfield, top-seeded Carmel advances to play Sycamore in the Dundee-Crown Supersectional at 7 p.m. Monday.
Wood, a 6-foot-5 junior guard who also had eight rebounds and four steals, topped her season average of 14.5 points to carry the Corsairs (25-7) to their second sectional title in four years. Her defense on junior guard Lexi Kerstein, who scored 16 of her 22 points in the first half for the Warriors (26-6), also was essential.
Carmel coach Ben Berg said Wood’s two-way play was particularly important during the team’s 9-0 run in the fourth quarter.
“Jordan stepped up,” Berg said. “We knew we had to try to get her the ball more in the second half. We were asking a lot of her to cover Lexi. She was tired. We had to get her going a little bit.”
Deerfield rode the strong play of Lexi Kerstein and freshman guards Nikki Kerstein and Aubrey Galvan to their second regional title in three years, but Carmel’s superior height wore them down Thursday.
Grace Sullivan, a 6-foot-4 senior center and Bucknell recruit, was unstoppable at times in the post for the Corsairs. She finished with 18 points and eight rebounds. Mia Gillis, a 6-1 junior forward, had a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds.
“I knew they were going to trap me and Grace, but they can’t guard all three of us,” Wood said. “We have three really good post players.”
Gillis also helped slow down the Corsairs on offense when Deerfield’s pressure defense was causing them fits.
“I thought we got sped up toward the end, but we calmed down and made better passes,” Gillis said.
Lexi Kerstein was sensational for Deerfield, scoring 14 of its first 16 points. She made floaters, drove to the basket and wasn’t afraid of attacking Carmel’s legion of 6-footers. Nikki Kerstein, her younger sister, added 19 points.
“We haven’t played a team this tall,” Lexi Kerstein said. “I knew (Wood) was tall, but I knew I had the speed, and that was my advantage. They did a good job finishing in the post.”
All six of Deerfield’s losses came against teams that have at least 24 wins, including Downers Grove North (24-8), Geneva (25-5), Hersey (27-6), Providence Catholic (27-7) and Maine South (24-10).
“We knew the height was going to be a problem,” Deerfield first-year coach Nicole Keith said. “We shifted up some things, and if we hit a few more shots, it would’ve been a different game. We showed a lot of fight. We’re not hanging our heads. We’re a young team that will be back here next year.”
Bobby Narang is a freelance reporter for the News-Sun.
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