LADUE • Shad Nichols and his Principia girls basketball team weren’t taking anything for granted.
After hammering MICDS 53-19 last week, the Panthers went on the road for their Metro League rematch Tuesday. The result was the same, but things tightened up — if only for a half — as Principia took out the host Rams 51-38.
“You knew that was going to happen,” Nichols said. “They’re too good a team and (Scott Small) is one of the best coaches in the area.”
MICDS (14-5 overall, 4-2 league), the No. 8 team in the STLhighschoolsports.com small-schools rankings, opened the game on fire. The Rams scored 17 first quarter points and led nearly the entire first half. Only at the end of the second quarter did No. 5 Principia get its nose in front, 23-22.
Sophomore guard Emily Kyman scored 15 of her team-high 17 in the first half to keep MICDS hanging around.
The second half, however, was all Panthers. Standout guard Liz Gilman scored 17 points and forward Kara Johnson netted 16 as Principia (16-3, 6-0) held MICDS to just five fourth quarter points.
“I thought we wore out a little bit late,” Small said. “They’re a lot bigger than us. They’re a senior team, they’re gritty.”
The Rams were able to keep pace with the high-scoring Panthers when Kyman was on the court, knocking down shots and attacking the basket. When she had to sit or play less aggressive because of foul trouble in the second half, that’s when the Rams appeared to lose their offensive rhythm.
“We’re not an inside team. We rely on outside shooting,” Small said. “For us to be successful, we need to have someone firing.”
Principia dealt with its own foul trouble as Johnson was tagged with three personals in the first half. A scoring and rebounding machine, Johnson does her best work around the basket and in transition. All 16 of her points came in the paint or at the rim.
The game had a bit of an edge to it if only because it’s so rare Principia beats MICDS in any athletic endeavor. Sweeping the season series is a huge deal for the Panthers and something of a nice personal win for Nichols.
Nichols and Small went to Principia College together. Small is a Principia High graduate.
While the Rams weren’t happy with the end result Tuesday night, Small has his sights firmly set on the big picture. No, he doesn’t like to lose. But in the midst of a tough five-game stretch he’s seeing the things he wants out of his team. There’s no shame in dropping a pair of games to an impressive Principia team and one to rival Westminster while picking up wins over No. 8 large-school Ursuline and Visitation. In fact, that’s a pretty good run for a team with only two seniors, three juniors and a whole lot of underclassmen.
“We thought this five-game stretch would be difficult,” Small said. “We’re young. It’s easy to get impatient. This is a building process.”
