Class 3A No. 3 Mount Vernon knows where the 3-point line is.
On Friday, Jan. 23, in a 66-41 win over Hwy. 1 rival Solon (ranked No. 9 in 4A) the Mustangs found it 12 times, by seven different players.
“Everybody on this team can do everything,” sophomore Savanna Wright said. “There’s not anybody that can’t shoot, or can’t guard a person for a play. It makes us stand out from other teams.
“Other teams may have one good girl … all 11 of ours can score.”
Mount Vernon (15-2, 10-0) led by four at halftime, 24-20, and led by six after a Tenley Levin 3-pointer made it 32-26 early in the third quarter.
The Mustangs broke loose with a 20-3 run to close out the third. The scoring barrage featured six 3-pointers by four different players.
“We are at our best if everybody touches it, and there is equal opportunity,” Mount Vernon coach Jacob Misener said. “We certainly want our opponent to guard the whole floor and respect all the players out there.
“The ball finds the right people at right time.”
Wright led the offense with 23 points, including two 3-pointers. It was a bit of a drop off from Tuesday, Jan. 20, when Wright had a school-record seven 3-pointers and 31 points in a 66-38 win over Marion.
“She’s red-hot right now,” Misener said. “She’s even stinging the net in practice. She’s just in the zone.”
Wright has been pushed to the top of every scouting report as the team’s leading scorer.
“I just knew I needed to step up because that’s what our team needed,” Wright said. “As long as we win, that’s all that matters to me.”
“She has to dictate more play and has the ball in her hands more,” Misener said. “She is getting covered more aggressively.
“You saw some growing pians in December. But it was only a matter of time before she sorted that out. That’s what you are seeing right now.”
Levin gave the Mustangs some problems the first matchup in Solon. This time Courtney Franck got the assignment to slow her down. Levin finished with a team-high 15 points for Solon (8-5, 7-3) on 5-of-12 shooting.
“Courtney is a warrior,” Misener said. “To put in that defensive effort, pull down (15) rebounds. She is just a real-life super hero. She just gets it done for us.”
The win clinched a share of the WaMaC East title for the Mustangs with three games against East opponents remaining. A win over CPU, Independence or Marion will clinch the title outright.
Mount Vernon closed the week by attending the Northern Iowa women’s basketball game Sunday. The Panthers hosted the Evansville Purple Aces, whose lineup includes former Mustang Sydney Huber, who is a starter as a freshman.