Lady Wave takes down rival

What started out as a potential upset bid suddenly turned into a blowout and a fifth straight win for the Fallon girls basketball team.

The Lady Wave survived a horrid start and rebounded in the second to blow past rival Fernley, 54-26, in a Northern Division I-A game on Tuesday at the Elmo Dericco Gym.

Now, Fallon (9-2 league, 12-7 overall) sets its sights on Truckee (3-7, 5-10) for a 6 p.m. tip today.

“We were forcing passes and their defense was sluggish,” Fallon coach Anne Smith said of her club. “Fernley had very good defense (in the first half).”

Fallon hammered the Wolverines, 54-35, on Jan. 2, but knows it cannot overlook any opponent in the club’s fight for the No. 1 seed.

A sluggish start against Fernley left coach Anne Smith frustrated, although she was pleased with how her team regained focus in the second half.

“I told my kids they had to start working on defense,” Smith added. “Jeek (Janelica Galera), Zoey (Swisher) and (Ali) Tedford all did a good job. Once our defense jump starts, it carries over into our offense.”

Both teams missed numerous open layups and shots close to the basket, especially the Vaqueros. If those shots fell, Fallon would have been down at least 10 points at halftime.

Instead, the Lady Wave took a 20-17 advantage into the locker room thanks in part by seven points from senior guard Ali Tedford and six from fellow senior Maggie O’Flaherty.

Tedford finished with a game-high 21 points, while O’Flaherty had 10.

“The first half was very rough for us,” Tedford said.

“We were rushing passes, turning it over, playing not very good defense. They had a lot of wide-open layups that if they would’ve made it would’ve been a very different game.”

Credit Fernley, though, for a suffocating defense in the first half. The Vaqueros swarmed Fallon’s pick-and-roll offense using double- and triple-teams to force turnovers and ill-advised shots and passes.

Makenzie Peek drilled a 3-pointer early in the second quarter to give Fernley an 11-10 lead, while Lynsee Ferretto nailed a 20-footer as time expired to slice Fallon’s lead to 20-17.

In the second half, though, the Lady Wave’s full-court press and their intensity picked up. Tedford stole a pass and assisted O’Flaherty on a fast-break, then Tedford scored the next 14 points — and two from Madison Perazzo in the final seconds — to give Fallon a commanding 38-21 lead with 10 seconds left in the quarter.

Defensively, the Lady Wave allowed just nine points in the second half as the press rattled Fernley’s ball handlers and shot selection.

“I think our press is what picked up,” Tedford added. “We got a big enough lead and shut them out of the game. I definitely think we were cocky in the beginning. We have to come out ready to play and everybody is a threat.”

Today’s game, however, presents yet another challenge for Fallon. Smith said it’s critical her team comes out sharp and focused as the Lady Wave uses each game to prepare for their big showdown at Lowry (10-0, 15-4) on Feb. 7.

“We will have a couple hard days of practice,” she added. “Just intense practices and maybe a reminder of what can happen if you don’t start the game off (slow).”