About the only thing Wayland girls’ varsity basketball coach Marty Howard wanted Friday evening in the Class B district championship game was no surprises.
And he got it.
As expected, Howard’s Lady Wildcats cruised to an easy 75-32 triumph over Wyoming Godwin Heights, and his only worry might have been about somebody getting hurt. Nobody did and Wayland delivered a knockout blow to Godwin in the first three minutes of the contest in vintage style.
The Lady Wildcats, now 22-1 for the season overall, wasted virtually no time in picking the pockets of the Wolverines as they tried in vain to bring the ball up the court against devastating pressure defense. Though junior guard Ali Martus drilled a three, her teammates scored three layups off steals and a short jumper by all-state senior point guard Presley Hudson to take an 11-2 advantage and cause Godwin to call a timeout to regroup.
It was no use. Things only got worse for the Wolverines in the next three minutes, and they were looking at a deficit of 22-2 with 2:20 remaining in the opening quarter.
Howard played 10 different players in the first half, letting the so-called “second unit” work together in the second period in an effort to sharpen their skills in case they’re needed deeper into the tournament. As a result, Wayland mounted a 39-16 cushion by intermission. At that point, a balanced offensive effort showed Hudson had 11 points, senior forward Morgan Winger eight, Martus seven and Hope Dollarhide six.
The Wolverines were no match for that pressure defense, committing far too many turnovers and being victims of steals which led to easy baskets.
With 2:30 left in the third quarter, officials started the running clock, as the Lady Wildcats had passed that 40-point threshold with a 63-23 lead. By the end of the period, it was 66-23, thanks to a three by junior guard MacKenzy Kasper.
Neither team did a lot of scoring in the fourth stanza with that running clock that stopped for nothing but free throws.
Hudson ended the contest by scoring close to her season average with 20 points. Martus netted 12 points, junior Ali Cutler had nine and Dollarhide and Winger both added eight.
Toni Henry and Tiana Kidd-Robinson both had eight points for Godwin.
The Wildcats will play Belding, which now is 17-5 for the season, in the regional semifinals at 5:30 Tuesday evening at Charlotte. Haslett (18-5) and Ionia (13-9) are the other two teams in the tourney. Finals will be at 7:30 Thursday.
PHOTO: Lady Wildcats and coaches Marty Howard (far right), Randy Kasper and Coralie Miller (back, second from left) are all smiles with the district championship trophy they earned Friday evening.
