MUSKEGON – The Reeths-Puffer girls basketball team didn’t have an answer when it came to beating Muskegon on Friday, but the Rockets may have found a more complete post player.
Senior center Irelyn Niklasch finished the night with 12 points and 15 rebounds in a 73-54 loss on the road in an O-K Green Conference rivalry game.
Niklasch has been a strong rebounder all season, but her offensive contributions - like most of her teammates - have been hit and miss.
R-P's Irelyn Niklasch shoots a free throw. Photo/Jeremy Clark
“I thought she did a great job,” R-P head coach Rodney Walker said about Niklasch. “Just getting rebounds and taking care of the ball. She moved the ball side to side really well and that’s what we wanted her to do. She played really well tonight.”
Niklasch was a much-needed second weapon for the Rockets behind star guard Brooklynn Tornes, who finished the game with 29 points, four rebounds, three assists and three steals.
Even with Niklasch putting the ball in the hoop, R-P continues to struggle to find enough offensive contributors on a regular basis.
“We just need someone to step up,” Walker said. “Against Holland (on Tuesday) we had a lot of people score, and this game we didn’t have that. That’s really the biggest issue we have, getting players more consistent about scoring points.”
R-P's Brooklynn Tornes tries to dribble past a defender. Photo/Jeremy Clark
It was a Tornes and Niklasch show for R-P from the opening tip on Friday. Tornes had five first quarter points while Niklosch added four. Despite that, the Rockets trailed 16-9 at the first buzzer, due in part to turning the ball over six times.
In the second quarter, R-P senior Megan Barmes knocked down two three-pointers, but Muskegon still outscored the Rockets 17-13 to take a 33-22 lead at halftime.
The Rockets were dominated in the third quarter, with Muskegon making 11 of 17 shots from the floor and Reeths-Puffer going 5-for-13 while committing four turnovers.
The Big Reds outscored the Rockets 27-14 in the high-scoring quarter to take a 60-36 lead into the fourth.
R-P's Megan Barmes tries to get a shot over a leaping Big Red. Photo/Jeremy Clark
“It was the same last time,” Walker said, referring to a 55-40 loss to Muskegon on Jan. 30. “We just didn’t control the pace and slow things down how we wanted to. We kind of got to a place where we sped up based off the defense.”
Tornes netted 11 points in the fourth quarter to help Reeths-Puffer outscore the Big Reds 18-13.
The Rockets are now 6-10 overall and 5-5 in conference play. They’ll host Grand Rapids Union on Tuesday in another O-K Green matchup.
“We got more games,” Walker said. “We just have to trust each other more and slow things down on offense.”
