The Cooper girls basketball team came into Thursday night’s contest at the Thomas B. Finn Activity Center with Holy Cross on a 33-game winning streak against 9th Region opponents.
Holy Cross (4-1) put an end to it with a 66-54 victory, using balanced scoring to take down the Jaguars (2-1). Four players hit double figures for the Indians, a fifth scoring nine points as they bounced back from a double overtime loss to Highlands on Tuesday.
“Cooper’s had our number, they’ve had everyone’s number,” Indians coach Ted Arlinghaus said. “We just said this game would come down to whoever handles the other team’s pressure and we feel like we really forced our pressure on them and made them uncomfortable.”
Some keys to the game below:
How it went down
Cooper shot out to an 8-0 lead before Holy Cross settled in and answered with a 15-2 run, eventually taking a 18-15 advantage into the second quarter thanks to an Ella Lehmkuhl triple before the first quarter horn. Holy Cross never trailed from that point on.
The Indians led by eight on two different occasions in the second at 27-19 and 32-24 before the Jaguars closed on a 7-2 run to get within three at the break at 34-31.
Alyssa Arlinghaus scored 10 straight points for the Indians to turn a 42-41 lead into a 52-43 edge in the early stages of the fourth. Cooper struggled to get much going offensively in the final stanza, not getting their first points of the quarter until Zene Thompson’s two free throws to make it 53-45 with 4:45 to play.
The Jaguars would get no closer from there.
Pace of play
This certainly was no replay of the 9th Region tournament semifinals last year when Cooper won 42-30. The two nearly had that point total by halftime. The two combined for 84 shots in the contest and 116 possessions. The two have shown they’re going to play fast with the amount of guards they have.
The balance of Holy Cross
Coming into the season, Arlinghaus felt he’d have at least three to four guards go for double figures on any given night. On Thursday, it was four as Alyssa Arlinghaus led the way with 16 points, Aniyah Carter added 14, Aumani Nelson with 12 and Jai Johnson with 10. Ella Lehmkuhl just missed double figures with nine points and DMyah Williams tossed in six, working her way back from injury.
“Great balance. Cooper is the first team that played us a true man-to-man,” Arlinghaus said. “We had seen zone, gimmick defenses and it’s nice to see a lot of the work we put in the offseason come to fruition. Cooper does a lot of things well on the defensive end, so we had to do a lot of our secondary action and those worked so it was nice to see that come through.”
If the Indians can continue that balance, they’ll be a tough out on any given night.
The balance of the 9th Region
For the first time in a few years, it finally feels like it’s not a two-horse race with Cooper and Ryle. On top of Cooper losing to Holy Cross, Ryle is off to an 0-5 start with a very young roster. The three mentioned along with Notre Dame, Highlands and Dixie Heights should all be considered 9th Region title contenders.
“The region is very balanced one through six, seven, eight, nine. On any given night, you’ll see teams win. Last couple years was top heavy, this year on any given night, you can see that happening,” Arlinghaus said. “If everyone can stay healthy, the 9th Region tournament is going to be a blast this year.”
Notre Dame has had the most impressive start at 4-0, but it’s obviously December and a lot of basketball to be played until the first week of March before everyone descends on NKU.
Arlinghaus comes to life in the second half
After being held scoreless in the first half and taking just two shots, Arlinghaus exploded for 16 second half points, hitting 3-of-4 three-point attempts and going through a stretch where she scored 10 straight points for the Indians.
“I knew eventually my shots were going to fall and to keep being aggressive,” Alyssa Arlinghaus said. “We came out with a lot of energy after halftime and we were ready to compete and especially be aggressive on the offensive end.”
Arlinghaus will be key for the Indians this year as a player that can certainly stretch the floor.
Indians making them pay at the line
Holy Cross continues to shoot at a high clip from the free throw line. They entered Thursday’s game hitting 74% of their free throw attempts through their first four games and hit 17-of-20 on Thursday. That puts them up to 77% on the year.
“A learning experience”
That’s what Jaguars coach Justin Holthaus called this game. It put an end to their supremacy over the 9th Region, but much better it happen in December compared to late February, early March.
With four starters graduated from last season’s team, including three of them that are currently playing Division I basketball, the whole team is taking on new roles and learning them as they go.
“We talked to the girls and told them it’s a learning experience,” Jaguars coach Justin Holthaus said. “We’ve got to figure out how to play under pressure, convert under pressure. It’s just what it was.”
The Queen of the Commonwealth that they start play in next week along with matchups against Sacred Heart (Jan. 3 and Feb. 15), Assumption (Jan. 7), Anderson County (Jan. 18), and the top tier 9th Region teams will certainly have them battle tested come 33rd District tournament time in February.
Some bright spots for the Jaguars were Zene Thompson leading the team with 13 points, Addyson Brissey adding 10. Alivia Scott chipped in nine with Lyric Hooper tossing in seven. Brissey and Hooper had three steals apiece.
Noel keyed in on
The amount of defenders Holy Cross threw on Cooper standout Haylee Noel probably couldn’t be counted on one hand. Aniyah Carter drew the assignment for the most part and did so admirably as Noel was held to 11 points on 4-of-14 shooting with seven rebounds, two assists and eight turnovers. It’s a job Carter takes pride in.
“Unless they’re like 6-foot-5,” Carter said. “If I bring the pressure, my team is going to bring it right behind me. It starts with the person at the top, whether it’s me, Jai, any of the guards, it starts with them.”
Noel will only grow and learn from it as she takes on a new role with a team that replaced four of her counterparts in the starting lineup.
“Early on wanted her to be a little more aggressive going downhill and trying to score a little bit,” Holthaus said. “That’s one thing about Haylee and why she is so special, she’s always going to find the open man and has been really successful at doing that over these last couple years. This year we need to have her more of that scoring role and an aggressor. Kids have off nights and this happened to be one of her off nights. She’ll grow from this. She’s going to be the focal point of every team we face and she’ll bounce back.”
The streak is over
Cooper’s last loss to a 9th Region opponent prior to Thursday night was Feb. 1, 2022 against Ryle. To win 33 straight games in the 9th Region is quite the feat, considering the amount of talent it presents.
“I’m competitive as heck and never want to lose a game, but to happen early in the season is something we talked about,” Holthaus said. “It’s December 12th, we’ve got to grow. Graduated four starters from last year and roles that have to be worked through. We just have to find ways to grow.”
Next up
Holy Cross plays Russell in the Stephanie Wilson Memorial Classic at Bellevue on Saturday at 1:45 p.m. Russell won the 16th Region and played in the state tournament last season. Cooper is off for eight days before they return to action on Dec. 20 in the Queen of the Commonwealth tournament at Bullitt East. They’ll open up with DuPont Manual in the usual highly-competitive tournament.