M-ettes defeat tough foes

Jada Nicholson didn’t seem too thrilled about turning 18, though she did her part to secure a victory for the M-ettes last Thursday in Malta against Wolf Point.

“I’m sad,” she said. “I don’t want to grow up. I’m a child.”

Despite having the similar disdain for aging like Peter Pan, Nicholson did not let that affect her game as she scored 14 points in the M-ettes staggering 58-21 win over the Lady Wolves. Nicholson also had four rebounds and three steals. She was also 6-of-8 from the field.

Sophia Stiles led all scorers with 17 points, eight rebounds, five steals, four assists and a block.

Knowing that Wolf Point would be seeking revenge for Malta giving them their only loss this season, the M-ettes were ready.

“We definitely knew defense was going to win the game,” Stiles said. “We knew that they wanted us but we wanted it more and we wanted to be number one in the conference.”

Malta’s defense gave up 21 points.

“Usually we do better on defense,” Nicholson said, noting that it was also the key to their victory.

Nicholson mentioned that the Lady Wolves were able to put up many shots.

The Lady Wolves put up 42 shots but only hit seven of the attempts (16%). Malta was 23-of-49 from the field (46%) while also scoring 14 second chance points and 14 points off of turnovers.

Malta also scored 16 points from the bench.

“I definitely think that the younger girls coming off of the bench have been looking to score more,” Stiles said. “Kyleigh’s (Schipman) definitely been coming in and hitting some shots for us which has been awesome. I just think that they look a little more comfortable on defense and offense.”

Getting the win on her birthday, Nicholson only wanted one more thing for her special day.

“Cake,” she said.

The M-ettes and many other Class B teams have changed up their game times, putting the girls games at a later time slot than the boys games for most of the 2016-17 regular season.

“It’s going to affect us in the morning, I think,” Nicholson said. “But we’re all night owls and we’ve had a lot of night games.”

Nicholson went on to say that she still had homework to do that night.

“I was so used to playing before the boys and it is still weird playing after the boys, especially when you have a good competition and game coming up. You just want to go; and you can’t,” she said.

She noted that the extra preparation time was beneficial.

In the team’s 44-35 win over Havre, the team was able to hold Havre to one point in the third quarter, while also scoring 17, giving Malta a 34-12 lead going into the fourth.

Though Havre would put up 23 points to Malta’s 10 in the fourth quarter, the damage was done and Malta grabbed a 1-0 start to the season series.

The team was led by Stiles, who had 19 points, four steals and two assists. Nicholson had 12 rebounds, eight points, four assists and two steals. Eva Harms had eight points and seven rebounds.

The M-ettes are scheduled to play Rocky Boy this Friday, February 3 in Malta at 6 p.m. The team will then travel to Roundup to play the Lady Panthers at 4 p.m. on Saturday, February 4.