By TYLER HENRY
Little Apple Post contributor
As the month of January winds to a close, two ranked Manhattan area rivals will square off on Friday night when the #3 Wamego girls travel to St. George to take on #10 Rock Creek.
Both teams have high aspirations as we head into the home stretch of the season, as the Lady Raiders come into this contest at 12-1, while the Lady Mustangs enter at 11-2.
While Wamego and Rock Creek have each looked dominant in stretches this season, both have also proven to be human, each taking one of their three combined losses at midseason tournaments last week.
This series has been dominated by the Lady Raiders as of late, as Wamego has taken the lone matchup in each of the last six seasons, but the Lady Mustang’s ability to adapt and find ways to win will serve them well here if they can overcome those previous losses mentally.
“There are definitely moments where it looks like we’re peaking and playing our best basketball and then there are moments like Tuesday where we’re not,” Rock Creek head coach Adam Plummer said. “I’m hoping we show up on Friday for a pretty good rivalry, I know our kids are excited to play, and mentally I hope we don’t put a block inside of our heads that we can’t beat them.”
On the other side of this matchup, Wamego has put a heavy emphasis on handling the Lady Stang's size offensively, and pressure defensively.
“Rock Creek is very intentional about getting their posts involved and they do a nice job of getting it inside to them,” Wamego head coach Brian McIntosh said. They complement that with a few guards that can knock down the three, and they like to use their length on the defensive end and get deflections in their zones.”
For Rock Creek, the focus this week has been on dealing with the quickness of a small, but lethal Raider attack that has kept opponents off balance all season long.
“Wamego is very guard-oriented and they have a lot of speed and shooting ability at that position,” Plummer said. “They have some kids with skill sets that you don’t usually see and we have to make sure we do a really good job of staying disciplined and helping on our back-side rotations.”
To come away with another win and maintain their spot in the top three of the KBCA rankings, Wamego will need to stay true to their identity and push the pace despite facing one of their tougher opponents this season on paper.
“Our defensive pressure and ability to attack offensively will always be what propels this team forward,” McIntosh said. “We will need to be assignment correct tonight and it always helps when you can knock down shots.”
Both teams will also prepare for a rivalry atmosphere that has only gotten better as the joining of the two teams in the same league draws closer.
“This game always has a great atmosphere and the gym will be packed tonight with fans and student sections,” Plummer said. “I’ve tried to downplay this as just another game in years past but it’s really not and we need to show up because they always show up. It’s important for them to beat us and it needs to be important for us to beat them.”
Tip-off between the Lady Mustangs and Raiders is set for 6:00* pm at Rock Creek high school with the boys’ game to follow at 7:30*.
For continuing coverage of all four teams all season long, stay tuned to the Little Apple Post.
*Game times have been updated.