Lady Trailblazers put on defensive clinic in win over Mineral Area in home opener

VINCENNES, Ind. – The Vincennes University Lady Trailblazers finally got to hit the floor at the P.E. Complex after nearly a year away and defended their home court accordingly with a strong 60-43 win over Mineral Area College.

The two evenly matched teams battled hard, back and forth through the first quarter, with Mineral Area building a lead of six points before the Blazers answered to close the first quarter and take a 14-13 lead off a layup from sophomore guard Amani Brown.

Vincennes took this momentum into the second quarter as the Blazers held Mineral Area to just eight points in the 10 minute period, helping VU gain a 14-point lead before halftime.

Freshman guard Noni Russell led the Blazers offensive charge in the second quarter, hitting three three's on her way to 13 first-half points.

The defensive battle continued as neither team was able to find a good shot, with the two teams combining for just 15 points in the quarter.

Vincennes put the hammer down in the fourth quarter as Amani Brown and sophomore guard Reeva Hammelman helped seal the Blazers victory.

VU held strong defensively, only allowing 43 points and holding the Cardinals to just 30-percent shooting from the floor.

"One of the things we talked about in shootaround was keeping the ball in front of us and not making silly mistakes. We made some mistakes defensively but when we played Mineral Area before we gave up a lot of points off of our mistakes," Hall of Fame Head Coach Harry Meeks said. "We just tried to keep the ball out of the middle, make it a perimeter game for them and I thought we did that."

"I thought our girls played really tough basketball. We didn't let anything bother us as far as mistakes and I was really pleased with the effort," Meeks added. "We made enough shots to get it done and I think our shooting will continue to get better. We haven't really practiced that many times, we have started to eliminate stuff that we can't do, we are right now where we would normally be after a couple of scrimmages. I was pleased with how we played. We played for one another, shared the ball and everyone had an opportunity."

Hammelman would finish with a game-high 14 points. Russell finished with 13 points and three assists and Brown also reached double-figures with 10 points, five assists and three rebounds.

"Noni was really a life saver in the first half. She came in and did a really nice job for us. Noni is a freshman, she hasn't played that much, but I keep telling her 'your number will be called and you need to be able to do the job when it's called'," Meeks said. "She plays hard, she can handle the basketball, she's got a big-time motor. She doesn't get tired."

VU looks to continue their winning ways as they hit the road Monday, Feb. 1 to begin Region 24 play as they take on Olney Central at 6:30 p.m. eastern.

"We are going to have to play the same kind of basketball Monday," Meeks said of his upcoming matchup. "Olney's got really good guards. I was really impressed with their guards when we scrimmaged them. Coach Burris really coaches them up and we enjoy playing them. Olney Central is a tough place to play, every game is a tight game over there. We scrimmaged them here, so I'm going to have to look at that film and see what to do with them next."