5 Takeaways: McCutcheon vs Harrison
Wednesday night I had the chance to see McCutcheon (14-10) vs Harrison (21-2) in a matchup between two of the Lafayette area’s best teams. Harrison came into the night with its only losses coming to 4A State Title favorite Northwestern…
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Continue ReadingWednesday night I had the chance to see McCutcheon (14-10) vs Harrison (21-2) in a matchup between two of the Lafayette area’s best teams. Harrison came into the night with its only losses coming to 4A State Title favorite Northwestern and a good Brownsburg team. McCutcheon was a lot better than their regular season record as they lacked the presence of 2022 guard Teresa Maggio.
This one was neck and neck the whole way with.both teams trading shots over and over. Harrison led 11-9 after one quarter. McCutcheon got going in the second but trialed 26-19 going into the half. McCutcheon came out firing in the second half outscoring Harrison 18-9 in the third led by stellar play from Teresa Maggio. McCutcheon was able to maintain the lead throughout the fourth and finished the game off with a 48-43 upset.
McCutcheon’s Toughness Prevailed
The hustle plays had the biggest impact late in this one. McCutcheon’s toughness and intensity was on display all night. Previously Harrison had defeated McCutcheon 69-41 and 67-25. That was before the late addition of Teresa Maggio. McCutcheon Is a team who is always going to the get the most out of their players and it showed Wednesday vs Harrison.
Harrisons Shooting Struggles Were the Story of This One
Harrison came into the night 21-2 and ranked in the 4A AP Top 10. It looked like a guarantee they would be playing against Northwestern Saturday night, but that’s the magic of the post season. Harrison finished the night shooting 12-51 from the field overall and 1/19 from beyond the arch. Despite these struggles they still found themselves in the game late. Senior wing Sydney Jacobson finished with 13 points and junior Lexi Fraley had 9.
Teresa Maggio Was Outstanding
This was Maggio’s second game of the season due to being held out for the year due to the IHSAA’s transfer rules. She made up for all that lost time with an outstanding performance helping lead her squad to the huge upset victory. She finished with 20 points, 10 rebounds, and 6 assist to lead McCutcheon. Her play in the third quarter as a facilitator and distributor was the reason McCutcheon was able to get back into the game.
McCutcheon Needs to Protect the Ball
Despite their victory McCutcheon needs to improve upon some things if they are going to get to Saturday night. They had twenty two turnovers in the game and if Harrison had shot the ball better MCC may have not been in a position to come back up the third quarter. Several players tried to do too much at times and it resulted in faulty passes leading to points for the other team.
Everyone Contributed for McCutcheon
McCutcheon had several players play huge roles in their upset victory Wednesday night. Senior forward Bailey Burton came up big when her number was called knocking down two big shots from three and hitting a buzzer beater to end the first half. Junior post player Heather Johnson excelled down the stretch for MCC finishing the game with 8 points and 9 rebounds. Junior Daylynn Thorton struggled from the field for MCC but finished with 8 points and made several big plays towards the end.