Home » Sports » De Pere throttles Brookfield East

De Pere throttles Brookfield East

By Greg Bates
Correspondent


DE PERE – If the De Pere girls’ basketball team is going to make a deep postseason run, coach Jeremy Boileau knows the key will be playing solid defense game in and game out.

If the Redbirds’ first playoff game was any indication, the team could be in fine shape.

No. 5-seeded De Pere held No. 13 Brookfield East to just nine first-half points, as the host Redbirds cruised 58-24 in a WIAA Division 1 regional semifinal Feb. 22.

“I thought we started off fast,” Boileau said. “Once we settled in and hit some passes and got to use some pressure for the offense. I thought we moved the ball well and really took advantage of some opportunities defensively that got us going on offense – then in the half court, we really got things going in transition, finding good opportunities and making shots. Definitely, the nine points in the first half were the key. The defense set the tone for us offensively. That’s what we need to do to make a run here and get a win against Germantown – you’ve got to be able to defend the 3-point line and get rebounds off of them.”

Brookfield East (6-17) shot just 22.2 percent from the field (8-for-36), while De Pere (16-7) was a scorching 51.1 percent (22-for-43).

After a slow start to shake off a few nerves in the playoff opener, De Pere was unstoppable on each end of the court.

The Spartans made it a 16-7 game with 9:24 left in the first, but the Redbirds ended the half on an 18-2 run to go up 34-9.

De Pere hit 10 of its first 15 shots to break open the game.

“I just feel like we had confidence in each other and ourselves and when we shot it, we just knew it was going to go in,” said De Pere guard Jordan Meulemans, who scored all 12 of points in the first half. “We just had that mindset.”

Boileau added: “I think we did a great job sharing the ball. It didn’t matter who scored. We didn’t have too many quick possessions, we really try to find the open spot. I thought we did a good job being patient and it led to some high-percentage shots.”

De Pere’s lead ballooned to 46-12 after Natalie Cerrato drained one of her three 3-pointers during the game.

Boileau liked the energy from his players during their game-changing 30-5 run that stretched for nearly 15 minutes.

“I just feel like we were playing De Pere basketball,” Meulemans said. “We were just playing our old basketball and we just have to carry that onto the playoff games after that.”

De Pere now turns its attention to playing another playoff game in less than 24 hours. The Redbirds will travel to Germantown for a 7 p.m. tip Feb. 23.

Even though Germantown is the No. 4 seed in its sectional, it is ranked No. 5 in the latest WisSports.net Coaches State Poll.

The Warhawks (20-3) are a team that shoots the ball well, featuring four players with 20 or more made 3-pointers.

“They’re going to play fast, just like us, so it’s going to be a really good matchup, I think,” Meulemans said.

Germantown is led by Natalie McNeal, who averages 19.2 points, 10.2 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 2.9 steals per game.

“We need to have great defense on every player on their team,” Meulemans said. “We need to have good defense, communicate and play together as a team.”

The fast-paced game is similar to what De Pere is used to and the girls will be ready for the showdown.

“We’re locked in and we’re ready for the challenge of Germantown,” Boileau said. “We’re both 1-0 at this point, that’s all that matters. One of us is going to end up 2-0, so hopefully, we can come back.”

Brookfield East (24)

Rachel Scott 0-2 2, Madison Hayden 0-0 4, Ellie Pink 1-2 1, Anna Gaskell 2-2 2, Caroline Cross 0-0 2, Hadley Mueller 0-0 3, Ella Grintjes 0-0 3, Adrianna Alberts 2-2 7.

De Pere (58)

Skyler Meulemans 0-0 3, Sophie Hubbard 2-4 2, Ellie Schneider 0-0 2, Kaitlyn Borseth 0-2 2, Megan Wettstein 1-2 5, Elena Miller 1-1 3, Kelly Dorn 0-0 2, Natalie Cerrato 0-0 11, Jordan Meulemans 3-4 12, Sophia McCarthy 0-1 10, Rachel Kerkhoff 0-0 6.

Brookfield East: 9, 15 – 24

De Pere: 34, 24 – 58

Facebook Comments
Scroll to Top