Chandler scores 26 in victory
CANONSBURG – Any coach will tell you that there’s no substitute for hard work. In the case of Uniontown’s girls basketball team, there’s not much work for substitutes.
Hamstrung by a lack of depth, the Red Raiders received 32 minutes from four of five starters en route to a convincing 55-31 road win over Canon-McMillan in both team’s Section 2-AAAA opener Monday night.
With senior forward Chrissy McLee currently ineligible and junior forward Casey Checton still recovering from an ACL injury, Uniontown (1-0, 5-1) received its most balanced scoring effort to date.
Jocelyn Chandler hit for an efficient 26 points, and was joined in double figures for only the second time this season. Junior point guard Jill Monahan scored a season-high 13 points, while junior forward Sara Kovach added a dozen.
“It makes it easier on us when people put pressure on Jocelyn,” said Monahan, who’s getting more comfortable as the team’s starting point guard. “It leaves people open.”
With the Big Macs (0-1, 1-2) double-teaming Chandler early on, Monahan and Kovach made them pay. Monahan sandwiched a three-pointer between two inside hoops from Kovach to stake Uniontown to a 14-4 advantage midway through the first quarter. The Raiders never looked back.
“People see us as a one-man team, and we’re not,” said Uniontown coach Annie Malkowiak. “If people want to continue to play us this way, things like this are going to happen. And it was good to see (Kovach) come out of her shell a bit tonight. We’re going to have to count on her a lot.”
Meanwhile, Canon-McMillan, which started five seniors, struggled to get its prime scorer, Taryn Gibson, untracked. Averaging 14.5 points through two games, Gibson had just one basket in the first half, and finished with just four points. She received little offensive support. The Big Macs got plenty of good looks at the hoop early on, but converted just six of 32 shots in the first-half in falling behind, 30-13.
And with Chandler dominating seemingly whenever she chose, Uniontown never let Canon-McMillan within 14 points the rest of the way. She converted nine of 13 field goals and yanked down 11 rebounds.
Through six games, she’s averaging 28.1 points per game.
“I try not to force anything,” said Chandler. “If they’re double-teaming me, someone’s got to be open.”
After the game, Malkowiak emphasized the importance of a short-handed, section-opening win on the road, especially with a big showdown looming Thursday at home against rival Albert Gallatin. “Any time you’re on the road in this section, wins are huge.”
Thursday’s contest will pit two of the WPIAL’s top players in Chandler and AG’s Loui Hall. But the difference, according to Malkowiak, will be determined by the respective supporting casts.
“People are going to see it as Loui against Jocelyn, but it’s going to be which of the other four are going to step up and support their so-called star.
“From a coaching standpoint, it’s going to be very fun to watch.”