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CASSOPOLIS — Cassopolis and White Pigeon squared off Friday in an early-season Southwest 10 Conference girls’ basketball showdown at Ross-Beatty High School.

Both the Rangers and Lady Chiefs, league co-champions at 17-1 in the 2023-24 season, expect to be at the top again with most of their roster from a year ago still intact.

White Pigeon’s quick start, size and pesky defense powered it to a 52-28 win over Cassopolis. It was the league opener for both schools. 

Cassopolis head coach Stephon Luckey continues to stress to his team about playing better defense. The Lady Rangers gave up 65 points in a 65-8 loss to Buchanan followed by the 24-point setback to White Pigeon.

“We’ve had a problem putting the ball in the basket and a knack for turning it over. We didn’t have as many turnovers tonight as we did last week against Buchanan. White Pigeon played extremely hard and we came out a little flat at the start of each half,” Luckey said.  

Cassopolis (0-1 league, 0-2) gained an early 3-1 lead following a three-pointer from junior guard Rylee Bowsher. But an 8-0 run, including a Sydney McClure triple, put White Pigeon in front 9-3. The Lady Chiefs went on to outscore the Rangers 7-4 the remainder of the quarter to grab a 16-7 advantage. 

McClure scored the first six points of the second period to give her ballclub a 22-9 advantage. White Pigeon increased its lead to 33-11 by halftime. Junior 6-foot-0 postplayer Sadie McDaniel and teammate Amyia Wright both had four points in a 11-2 run for the Lady Chiefs to close the period.

Another Bowsher triple cut Cassopolis’ deficit to 36-14 but the Lady Rangers still found themselves trailing its guests 42-18 entering the final eight minutes. 

Cassopolis found some success in the fourth quarter at the foul stripe where it hit on 7-of-13 attempts. The Rangers also got solid play at the offensive and defensive end of the floor from junior guard JaMya Hart and freshman Madalynn Yakel. 

“We started JaMya tonight and I thought it gave us some extra spark. She’s one of our better defenders,” Luckey added.

“Our bench has played pretty well in both of our games this season,” Luckey said.

Bowsher paced Cassopolis in the scoring column with 13 points and Nola Hawkins added five for the Rangers, who made seven field-goal attempts and 10-of-18 free-throw attempts for the contest. 

Hart finished with seven rebounds for Cassopois. 

White Pigeon (1-0 league, 2-2) outrebounded Cassopolis by a 33-17 margin. 

Three players reached double-digit scoring for White Pigeon led by McClure with 16. McDaniel added 14 points, including over half of those on offensive putbacks. Wright finished with 10 points and Shelby McDaniel chipped in with eight for the Lady Chiefs, who made 18 field-goal tries, including four triples, and 12-of-24 free-throw attempts. 

“We controlled the basketball for most of the game, but we got a little tired in the second half. Cassopolis’ gym is always a tough place to play so we talked to the kids before the game about keeping our composure and blocking out the noise, Our kids came out on fire defensively and then we were able to hit some shots and take care of the ball,” said White Pigeon head coach Brooke McClure.

White Pigeon’s coach praised the play of Sadie McDaniel inside.

“I’ve worked with our juniors and seniors ever since they were in third and fourth grade. They are all like daughters to me. Sadie struggles sometimes finishing her shot, but tonight she showed more confidence in doing that,” said White Pigeon’s coach. 

“Our team just wants to win. It’s not about how many points each of them score or how many rebounds they have. Nobody outshines the other. They all have their individual strengths, but they work together to do what it takes to be successful as a team.”

Cassopolis finished with 21 turnovers to 16 miscues for White Pigeon. 

“One of our biggest goals coming into the season is to win conference outright. Hopefully someone else beats White Pigeon and we get them next time around. We have to play more as a team and not as individuals. Our communication on defense isn’t where it needs to be right now,” Luckey said. 

Cassopolis’ success, especially the past two or three seasons, has revolved around its ability to get out in transition.

Luckey is counting on big performances this season from Hart and Bowsher, along with senior forward Janayla Franklin as well as Yakel and junior forward Cheyenne Redmond.

Freshman Maddie Nelson, a guard, will also add alot to the mix once she recovers from a sprained ankle.

Good team chemistry has been a big plus.

“The first game it looked like we hadn’t all played together before but these kids are a real close group in practice and in the hallways and they show improvement each day,” Luckey said. 

“We’re giving up too many offensive rebounds so we need to do a better job of boxing out,” Luckey said. 

Cassopolis finished 19-4 overall last season and lost in the district semifinals to Constantine.