Fast start propels Handley girls past James Wood

WINCHESTER — Handley girls' basketball coach Katlynn Orndoff said after the team beat Sherando on Dec. 13 that the Judges were going to look to expand upon focusing on just man-to-man defense in the future.

Handley used a zone press for the first time two games later against Millbrook on Dec. 21. In the Judges' first game since that victory over the Pioneers, the press definitely came in handy on Wednesday in another game against a local rival.

After picking up four fouls in the first two minutes in its man defense — two of which were called on star sophomore Reagan Edsell — the Judges switched to a zone press for the rest of a 48-point half that gave them a 26-point lead at the break against James Wood.

Handley only scored 15 points in the second half against a Colonels team that picked up its play, but the Judges still finished with a 63-43 win to improve to 8-0 overall and 4-0 in the Class 4 Northwestern District.

Handley struggled with Edsell on the bench in foul trouble against Millbrook, but Edsell played all 32 minutes on Wednesday thanks in part to the Judges playing zone for the majority of the game against the Colonels (4-9, 1-3). She only committed one more foul.

"[Playing zone] definitely helped me calm down," Reagan Edsell said. "I was very hectic in the first two minutes. I think going into that really helped me adjust and figure out what I was doing."

While playing the zone press calmed down Edsell from a mental standpoint, she and her teammates were by no means passive from a physical standpoint.

"It added energy," senior Corin Edsell said.

Reagan Edsell had 20 points, 19 rebounds and five steals, while Corin Edsell had 25 points — including 23 in the first half with the help of five 3-pointers — and five steals. The Judges forced James Wood into 16 turnovers in the first half and held them to 7-of-25 shooting, and they made 18 of 36 shots themselves.

Even with those four team fouls, the Judges had a 7-2 lead after two minutes and 15-2 edge after four minutes and 10 seconds with the Edsells scoring all but two points in that run. Corin (8-of-12 field goal shooting, 2-of-2 free throw shooting in the first half) knocked down two 3-pointers in the first four minutes, and she finished the half with a 3-pointer off an assist from Reagan just before the buzzer.

"[My teammates] all got me the ball when I was open," Corin Edsell said. "They did everything. All I had to do was shoot the ball, and it just was going in tonight."

"When she's on, she's on," Orndoff said. "She's hard to stop. Both [Corin and Reagan] did an outstanding job tonight. Without them scoring, it's a whole different ballgame."

The second half was a different story for the Judges. Reagan Edsell had nine points on four baskets in the second half, but the team made only 5 of 30 shots overall and watched James Wood open the fourth quarter with an 11-0 run to get within 57-41.

A Reese Craig putback with 5:07 left that made it 59-41 finally settled the action down. James Wood went 0 for 6 from the floor until Maddie Shirley scored on a steal and layup with 27 seconds left to make it 62-43. Handley did well to generate several lengthy possessions with its passing and dribbling over the last half of the fourth quarter to stifle James Wood.

"[Our press zone] worked there for a little bit, but our rotation got kind of sloppy [in the fourth quarter], so we switched back," Orndorff said. "I would have liked to have seen more pressure on the ball [overall], but we're going to work on that going forward, as well as communication on defense and getting our rotation down."

Orndorff and the Edsells said the Judges need to work on maintaining their intensity with big leads, noting that Wednesday wasn't the first time they let an opponent have new life.

"We get lazy on defense, for sure," Reagan Edsell said.

Cameron Hobson added eight points for Handley.

James Wood coach Sanford Silver gave credit to Handley for how well it shot the ball in the first half. As for his team's offense, he would have liked to see the Colonels work for quicker shots against the Judges in the first half because of how well Handley was trapping.

"We've got to be able to get the ball up the floor and let it go, instead of trying to dribble it too far up the court," Silver said.

In retrospect, Silver wishes he had used more pressure defense in the first half given how well the Colonels did with it in the final two quarters. James Wood outscored the Judges 21-15 after halftime.

"The game could have a little bit different," Silver said. "It's just a coaching thing you've got to live with, because we did make a real good run in that second half. They kind of stalled the ball on us late to keep us from going on another run, and I would have done the same thing too with us getting a little hot."

Shirley's shooting helped keep James Wood's offense afloat until the fourth quarter. She connected on three 3-pointers in the first three quarters and ended the game with a career-high 15 points.

"I think as the season has gone on, she's been growing, just like she did last year for us," Silver said. "Hats off to Maddie Shirley for shooting the ball very well."

The Colonels were also led by Nayah Edwards (11 points and 10 rebounds for her first career double-double) and Josie Russell (eight points and nine rebounds).

James Wood is next in action on Friday when it hosts Sherando at 6 p.m. Handley travels to Spotswood on Monday, which will kick off a stretch of four games in five days for the Judges.

— Contact Robert Niedzwiecki at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

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