Girls basketball: Azyah Newson-Cole’s 25 points lead Lincoln-Way Central past Lockport

LOCKPORT – It wasn’t the prettiest game that Lincoln-Way Central has played this season, but it got the job done as the Knights downed Lockport 55-47 on Monday night.

Lincoln-Way Central (5-1) got 25 points from Indiana-Purdue at Indianapolis-bound guard Azyah Newson-Cole and 15 points and seven rebounds from Gracen Gehrke en route to the victory. The Knights led 45-22 entering the fourth quarter, but Lockport (1-5) refused to quit and pulled to within 51-42 with 48 seconds remaining. That was as close as the Porters got, however, until Kaya Osinski (10 points) hit a 3-pointer in the final seconds to provide the final margin.

“It wasn’t our cleanest game,” Lincoln-Way Central coach Dave Campanile said. “We were trying to get some different rotations and different combinations of players in there. It’s only our sixth game of the season, and there will be some growing pains as we figure out what the combinations that work well together are.

“When a team is scrambling like Lockport was in the fourth quarter, sometimes the game isn’t very pretty. But we usually play with five guards, and they can handle the pressure.”

Lockport jumped out to an early lead as Newson-Cole was on the bench for the first four minutes. The Porters got five points from Brooke Sartin, including a 3-pointer, to take a 7-2 lead. Gianna Amiado then scored back-to-back baskets for Central to make it 7-6 before Alaina Peetz (8 points, 5 rebounds) made a pair of free throws to put Lockport ahead 9-6 as Newson-Cole entered the game.

She wasted no time in making her presence felt, driving and dishing to Brooke Baechtold for a basket before driving the lane herself for a bucket and a 10-9 lead, and the Knights never trailed again. It was the first of several drives into the lane for buckets for Newson-Cole.

“I feel like when I get in the lane, no one can stop me,” Newson-Cole said. “I am not being cocky, but I know the person in front of me can’t guard me. I know that shot is going to be there. I have been working on getting myself stronger so I can go in there and get those shots.”

When she wasn’t taking shots in the lane, she was finding open teammates, and Gehrke reaped a bulk of the benefit. Gehrke drained a pair of 3-pointers in the third quarter off passes from Newson-Cole.

“A lot of times, when Azyah goes in the middle, I make sure I am ready to shoot,” Gehrke said. “She draws so much attention that it leaves other people open. Both of my 3-pointers were because I was left open when someone went after Azyah.”

Meanwhile, Gehrke and the Knights were busy on the defensive end, forcing the Porters into 17 turnovers and limiting them to 13 points in the second and third quarters combined.

“We take a lot of pride in our defense,” Gehrke said. “Coach [Campanile] said that’s our identity, and we play man-to-man almost all the time. We only use a zone as a last resort.

“I am only 5-8, but I have to guard some of the other team’s big players because Lina [Panos] is out right now, and she usually guards the bigs.”

Lockport went on a 9-0 spurt early in the fourth quarter to tighten the game to 49-36. Veronica Bafia scored six of her team-high 12 points in the run, and Osinski added three free throws. Bafia later added back-to-back buckets the drew the Porters to within 51-40 before Osinski’s free throws in the final minute made it 51-42. Newson-Cole then scored in the lane before a putback bucket by Peetz. Annalina Nelson drained a pair of free throws for the Knights before Osinski’s 3 closed the scoring.