GREENWOOD — It didn’t take Center Grove long to eliminate any suspense from the second Johnson County girls basketball semifinal on Thursday night.
The defending county champion opened with a 30-2 blitz and coasted from there in a 53-22 victory over Edinburgh at Greenwood. The Trojans will face Whiteland in the championship game on Saturday.
"In all our games right now, our goal and what we’re preaching is eliminate the drama early," Center Grove coach Kevin Stuckmeyer said. "Play together, play tough, play hard. … I thought tonight the best we did in that. Offensively, we shared the ball, we were patient, we were the most composed we’ve been, and it showed."
The Trojans (3-2) wasted little time taking control, using 3-pointers from Ella Thompson and Emma Utterback to build an 8-0 cushion in the first two minutes. Destiney Ramey knocked down a jumper to get the Lancers (2-2) on the board, but Center Grove answered by scoring the next 22 points while holding Edinburgh scoreless for nearly 10 minutes.
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Ahead comfortably at the half, 35-6, the Trojans took their foot off the gas, resting their starters for the final quarter and a half.
Mary Wilson led a balanced Center Grove effort with 11 points, while Utterback and Thompson had 10 and nine, respectively. Ramey heated up in the second half and finished with a game-high 16 points for the Lancers.
Edinburgh coach Amy Schilling was pleased with how her team battled in defeat.
"I thought we played hard the entire game," she said. "It was just all about us getting better and using that to make us better and hopefully extend our season in January."
