BY CHRIS MANNINGNorthern Tier Sports Report
TROY — It was quite a night for Troy’s Kailyn Sterling, who hit two milestones in the same game en route to a 66-45 win over Canton in the first round of the NTL Girls’ Basketball Showcase Tournament Thursday.
In the second quarter Sterling scored her 1,000th career point, then in the fourth quarter she grabbed her 500th career rebound. On the night she finished with a double-double of 20 points and 11 boards, to go with two steals.
“It feels crazy,” Sterling said about getting two milestones in one night. “I’m just glad it happened. I’m thankful for everyone who’s helped me get there, and the points.”
Her coach Curtis Miller was excited to see Sterling have this night after four years of varsity hoops.
“She deserves it,” he said. “She’s worked so hard for that moment, so for her to get both of those milestones in one night, with this crowd, this environment, it’s just such a special moment. I’m so happy for her, she deserves everything she’s gotten.”
Sterling knew she was close, but with Canton putting up a strong fight early on it wasn’t on her mind.
“I was more focused on just winning the game,” Sterling said. “I knew I wasn’t going to be able to get to the basket easy, so I just had faith in my jump shot, and made a few.”
Getting those milestones is also nice because now she can focus on the upcoming postseason.
“Everyone’s always been telling me how close I am,” said Sterling. “It’s just like a weight off my shoulders, so I’m glad to have it off.”
The Warriors took a couple leads in the first quarter, but a 10-0 run in the back half of the second frame saw Troy open up a 13-point lead going into the locker rooms and Canton never quite recovered after that.
“Canton has some really good athletes, and they’re so well coached, and they came out ready to play,” Miller said. “They came out with a lot of aggression, they were physical, and they forced us into some tough spots, but I think our girls responded pretty well.”
Alyssa Parks had a big game with 17 points, four rebounds, and three blocks, as Madelyn Seeley had 10 points, and four boards off the bench. Giana Renzi finished with eight points, and four assists.
Gloria Andrews notched nine points, and four assists, as Kyah Renzo had two points, to go with four rebounds.
“I thought our girls did a really good job of moving the ball there on offense, and, as for the second chance opportunities, our girls have been fighting all year long for loose balls,” Miller said. “It’s been one of the things that we spend a lot of time talking about, is you’ve got to want the ball, and I think our girls did tonight.”
For Canton Cailyn VanNoy put up 16 points, four boards, three assists, and two steals, as Kendall Kitchen netted nine points, four rebounds, three assists, and three steals.
Lydia Roupp finished with nine points, and seven boards, with Alexis McRoberts, and Danah Wesneski getting four points each. Kendall Petrowski chipped in with three points.
“We came out with a lot of energy on both ends of the floor,” said Canton coach Ryan VanNoy. “We played very well the first half. Fouls got us in a little bit of trouble, and it changed our rebounding a little bit for us, but we played extremely hard in a tough environment, and it was a great game to have going into district play.”
VanNoy put Canton up 2-0 off the tip, but a runner by Parks, followed by a 3-ball from Renzi made it 5-2 Trojans.
Kitchen answered with a 3-ball of her own to tie up the score, with Sterling getting her first bucket to put Troy up 7-5.
A Parks free throw made it 8-5, but the Warriors responded with a 4-0 run on back to back VanNoy buckets to take a 9-8 lead.
Troy came back with a run of their own, as Parks hit a 3-ball, followed by a Sterling runner to go up 13-9 after one.
A Roupp 3-point play saw Canton cut it to 13-12 early in the second, but Parks came back with a 3-point play of her own for a 16-12 lead.
A McRoberts bucket made it a 2-point game, but a Sterling And-1 saw Troy push their lead to 19-14. VanNoy helped the Warriors keep pace with a runner for a 19-16 score.
The two teams would trade baskets - a runner by Parks, a lay-up by McRoberts - followed by a 4-0 run from the Trojans as Sterling hit a bucket, followed by Seeley hitting a pair of free throws.
Canton, though, followed with a 6-2 spurt as VanNoy hit Roupp for a lay-up, then scored on a runner the next time down to make it a 3-point game.
A Sterling bucket pushed Troy’s lead back to 27-22, but another VanNoy lay-up made the score 27-24.
However, that’s when Troy went on their big run, kicked off by buckets from Renzo and Seeley. That was followed by Sterling’s milestone making jumper for a 33-24 lead.
Renzi would score on a jumper, then find Sterling for another bucket to make it 37-24 Trojans at the half.
Canton would rally out of the break, as VanNoy went 3-for-4 from the free throw line, followed by Kitchen banging in a 3-ball to make it 37-30.
However, Troy responded with a 5-0 run themselves as Sterling had a lay-up, followed by Renzi hitting a 3-pointer for a 42-30 advantage.
A pair of Kitchen free throws made it a 10-point game, but Troy pulled away with an 8-0 spurt as Andrews started, and ended, the run with a 3-pointer.
A Kitchen free throw to end the quarter put Troy up 50-33.
An Andrews 3-ball to open the fourth put Troy up by 20. The Warriors went on a 9-0 run in the middle of the quarter to cut it to 57-42, but Troy answered with a 9-0 run of their own to secure the win.
“Cailyn VanNoy was phenomenal getting to the basket and finishing, but, overall, I was just proud of our girls,” Miller said. “The way we picked up our defense, the way we rebounded, the way that we pushed the ball in transition. Overall, it was just a good game.”
Despite the loss coach VanNoy was heartened to see how his team play as they get ready for districts next week, particularly that of Cailyn.
“She played really well tonight, I’m super proud of her,” he said. “She’s put a lot of time in. She made some tough shots in the first half that got us in the game. That’s probably the best game she’s had this year. Playing right now as best as you can coming into district play is putting us in a good spot.”
Troy will take on NEB on Friday at 6 p.m. at Mansfield University to defend their NTL Showcase title.
“It feels really great,” Sterling said about them being able to defend their Showcase title. “We’ve been taking it one game at a time, so we’re ready for tomorrow.”
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PHOTO CAPTION: Troy's Kailyn Sterling scores her 1,000th point...PHOTOS BY CHRIS MANNING
