‘I like to get in people’s heads’: State College girls basketball rides defense to 60-48 win over Altoona
State College and Altoona taking on one another is always a chippy affair.
Tuesday night’s game was no different with an added dimension of questionable calls by the referees and angry fans in State High’s North Gym. The Lady Lions quelled the roar of the crowd with sharp defense and uptempo offense, winning 60-48.
“We knew that it was Altoona and State College,” State College head coach Alli Mock said. “Right there off of the bat it was a rivalry game for both teams. So, we talked at halftime about how we were going to come out in the second half and we were going to get their best shot. It was going to be physical and it was going to be aggressive and we just needed to absorb that and work our way through it.”
The Lady Little Lions went back and forth with their Lady Lion counterparts. State College guards Jordyn Steindl and Diana Tsarnakova had 21 and 17 points respectively, while Altoona’s Lanie Wilt had a team-high 14 and Zaelinh Nguyen-Moore had 10 points. The two duos battled back and forth, but the Lady Little Lions’ pace of play proved to be too much.
State College swung the ball around the court with precision, finding the open shooters at the corners. Tsarnakova hit a few mid-range shots, while Steindl crashed down the lane. On the defensive end, they both sifted through screens, fought around box outs and continued to block shots and steal passes.
“(The most important aspect about) playing defense is to stay aggressive and just making sure I can annoy them as much as possible,” Tsarnakova said. “Just sticking with my person, communicating with each other. We emphasize it on our team… The most important part of me as a defender is my quickness. I can face guard a little easier.”
They really, really love to play defense.
“I like to get in people’s heads,” Steindl said. “I like to say stuff to them. I think defensively as a team, we played a lot better. We were way more aggressive. Our fouls – they weren’t quite there yet. Those were tough for us, but we were way more aggressive than we usually are and that helped us a lot.”
State College began by outscoring Altoona 16-10 in the first quarter with Tsarnakova putting up six points and Steindl scoring four respectively. Nguyen-Moore led the Lady Lions with four points in the first quarter, reaping the benefits in the paint.
Wilt began to aid the Lady Lions with a slight comeback, scoring five points in the second quarter with two field goals and a made free throw attempt. Tsarnakova had more than an answer for the Altoona stalwart, scoring nine points in the second with turnaround jumpers where she fell away from the basket and a 3-point shot to put the Lady Little Lions up 32-23 at the half.
State College continued its run in the third quarter by adding 14 more points to the ledger. Steindl had a 3-point field goal and two quick layups, along with Carley Donnell providing a jumper and a 3-point bucket of her own for a 46-36 lead.
The Lady Little Lions went on to pull away for the 60-48 win with Jessica Hawbaker making 6-of-8 free throw attempts in the fourth quarter, along with Steindl adding two made free throws and two field goals.
State College 60, Altoona 48
SC (2-2): Steindl 21, Tsarnakova 17, Donnell 8, Hawbaker 8, Fry 3, Tate 3
A (0-3): Wilt 14, Nguyen-Moore 10, Krull 9, Eyer 7, McGirk 5, Harpster 3
Half: 32-23, State College
Next: State College at Central Dauphin at 7:30 p.m. on Friday; Central Dauphin at Altoona at 7:30 p.m. on Dec. 20.
This story was originally published December 13, 2022 at 10:43 PM.
