By SCOTT NOVAK
Niles Daily Star

Despite having starting point guard Nichole Sly on the bench in foul trouble for much of the second half, host Niles was able to hold off Mattawan in overtime 65-62.

Sly picked up her fourth personal foul with 4:15 remaining in the third quarter.

Still, the Vikings were able to stay within striking distance and when Sly finally returned with 3:50 remaining in regulation, Niles starting clicking offensively and was able to force the game into overtime.

In the extra session, the Vikings outscored the Wildcats 8-5 to pull out the victory and improve to 10-4.

The overtime affair was the second in three days for Niles, which fell to South Bend St. Joseph on Tuesday night 60-57.

“We had some adversity to face as a team tonight because of some discipline we had to take care of. On top of it, this was the first game of the season that Nichole has been in such foul trouble so early that we had to sit her on the bench for most of the third and part of the fourth quarter,” Niles coach Patrick Touhey said.

Touhey went on to say how proud he was of the way his team fought that adversity and was able to bounce back from a tough night on Tuesday against St. Joseph to earn the victory.

“I told the kids in the locker room is what you guys need to understand, although Nichole is an intricate part of our team, but the way you guys stepped up without her in the game for as long as you had to play without her, I couldn’t be more proud of the effort and the willingness to play with heart and stick it out,” he said. “We were able to keep it close until we could get Nichole back into the game and gives us a chance to win it.”

While Sly still managed to finish with 17 points, six rebounds and five assists, it was the inside presence of Jenna Grannell that helped keep the Vikings in the game and eventually able to come out on top.

Grannell, who along with Maureen Craig played all 36 minutes, scored 21 points and grabbed six rebounds.

Craig got Niles off to a great start and finished the night with five 3-pointers, 16 points and four rebounds.

Mattawan had foul troubles of its own and when freshmen sensation Allie Havers fouled out with 2:46 remaining in the fourth quarter, the momentum shifted back to Niles.

“We didn’t have an answer for her all night,” Touhey commented.

Havers scored a game-high 25 points before being sent to the bench.

Trailing 54-49 at the time, Grannell connected on both free throws following Havers’ departure and when Grannell took a pass underneath from Sly, the lead was suddenly 54-53 with less than a minute remaining in regulation.

Sly again cut the lead to a point with 30 seconds left and two free throws later by the junior point guard; the game was knotted at 57-57 with 4.1 ticks left on the clock.
In overtime, Alex McIntee put the Vikings out in from just five seconds into the four-minute overtime and Niles never looked back.

Grannell scored to give the Vikings a three-point advantage (62-59) and then Niles made just enough free throws in the final 50 seconds to fend off the Wildcats.

Up 65-63 with six seconds remaining, Mattawan’s Alysse McBride, who finished the game with 18 points, had one last attempt to give the Wildcats the victory, but her shot bounced harmlessly off the rim as the horn sounded.

The Vikings are back in action on Tuesday night as they play host to Coldwater in a Big 16 Conference non-divisional contest.

MATTAWAN 62
Alyssa McBride 6 5-10 18; Amanda Money 0 0-0 0; Kara Kingma 2 3-6 7; Emily Stroh 1 2-3 4; Taylor Callen 0 1-2 1; Kelsie Meade 1 0-0 2; Kristen Cargo 1 0-0 2; Allie Havers 11 3-4 25. TOTALS: 23 15-27 62
NILES 65
Alex McIntee 3 0-0 6; Gabby Ezell 0 0-0 0; Maureen Craig 5 1-2 16; Nichole Sly 4 8-14 17; Whitney Ellis 0 1-2 1; Taylor Glick 1 1-1 4; Jenna Grannell 6 8-12 21. TOTALS: 19 19-35 65

Mattawan 16 28 45 57 62
Niles 13 21 44 57 65
3-point baskets: Mattawan 1 (McBride), Niles 8 (Craig 5, Sly 1, Glick 1, Grannell 1). Total fouls: Mattawan 28, Niles 20. Fouled out: Stroh (M), Havers (M). Varsity record: Mattawan 5-7, 1-3 West; Niles 10-4, 3-1 West