Fallon guard Ali Tedford leadas the Lady Wave against Dayton today and at Lowry on Saturday.
The philosophy is to put the first game to bed early, rest the starters and then turn the biggest game of the season.
It’s easy in theory, although Fallon girls basketball coach Anne Smith wants to see fire, passion and determination from her club in a 6 p.m. tilt against Northern Division I-A foe Dayton.
After struggling with consistency in a 48-33 win at Truckee last week, Smith threw down a challenge for her team this week. Bring the intensity.
“It seems like they play to the level of their competitor,” Smith said. “They just have to relax and play like they did against Elko, Spring Creek and Douglas. We are already in the playoffs … so that pressure is off. We just need to put four quarters together.”
Fallon (10-2 league, 13-7 overall) hosts the Dust Devils (0-12, 2-17) on Senior Night and follows on Saturday with a 1 p.m. tip against first-place Lowry (12-0, 17-4).
The Lady Wave is chasing the No. 1 seed and a weekend sweep will keep the dream alive. It also makes the road to the state tournament a bit easier as Fallon would face Spring Creek (7-5, 10-11), South Tahoe (5-7, 8-13) or Fernley (5-7, 8-12).
Although Dayton is not the biggest obstacle, Lowry is a different animal.
The defending state champs throttled Fallon, 56-33, on Jan. 10 and showed what it takes to cut down the nets.
The difference in mindsets was overwhelming and Smith and her team have been working toward that intensity in the weeks since. The results, though, have been mixed with up and down performances along the way.
Fallon was sharp and on point during its 51-48 win over Elko on Jan. 24, but struggled with consistency in wins over South Tahoe (33-22) and Truckee (48-33).
“They just need to relax and go out and play,” Smith said.
As a method of preparation, Smith has organized practices with a boys travel team, giving her players work against a fast and physical opposition.
Smith said the defensive pressure applied by the boys is an advantage come game time. The fast-paced tempo, she added, has helped calm her team down when facing a dizzying press.
The result is better decisions, passes and transition offense, which is what the Lady Wave needs on Saturday.
Lowry used its full-court press with force, especially in the third quarter of their previous matchup with Fallon.
“They are turning the ball over less and finishing more,” Smith said. “Thing we don’t want them to do is panic. That third quarter against Lowry they came out real big and we panicked. A good team like Lowry is going to capitalize on that.”