PHOTOS: League-leading Crean Lutheran wins defensive battle against Tustin

Crean Lutheran’s Savannah Brawley scores on a clutch jumper at the top of the key against Tustin Friday night. (Photos courtesy Crean Lutheran Shutterbugs, John Luciano and Howard Lyon).

Defense was the main focus during Friday night’s Empire League girls basketball game between Crean Lutheran and Tustin at Crean Lutheran.

Saints junior guard Jane Hewitt scored 15 points and the Crean Lutheran defense forced 21 turnovers as the Saints recorded a 42-28 victory. Crean Lutheran won its fifth consecutive game and remained undefeated in league and held a two game lead of first place.  

“It was a very good defensive effort by both teams,” said Crean Lutheran co-head coach Bianca Ziemann. “Give Tustin a lot of credit. They always play us hard defensively. We’ve been scoring nearly 70 points a game lately and tonight we were held to 42.”

The game was played without a shot clock due to a technical malfunction. Ziemann also gave credit to Tustin for their sportsmanship on the matter.

To see the slide show, click on the first photo:

After the Tillers (14-9, 2-3) got down early, Tustin center Gianna DeForest rallied her team by scoring seven points during a 9-2 run by Tustin to even the score at 11-11 at the end of the first quarter.

The Saints (14-6, 5-0), led by the aggressive defense of Quinsey Bryan, Hewitt and Jane Moyer forced turnovers on Tustin’s first seven possessions of the second quarter.

The Tillers were held without a basket until DeForest’s bucket with 1:25 left in the half. However, Crean Lutheran couldn’t create separation as the Tillers defense, led by JoJo Holder and Kai Jimenez, held the Saints in check as Crean Lutheran led by only 20-16 at halftime.

Both teams continued to struggle with their shooting in the third quarter but Bryan’s basket in the final seconds gave the Saints a 29-22 lead after three periods. 

Tustin was dealt a severe blow at the 7:01 mark of the third quarter when DeForest, while diving for a loose ball, was injured.

DeForest remained down on the court for about five minutes as trainers attended to her. She left the game and a bandage was placed over the bridge of her nose. She started the fourth quarter, but Tustin coach Claire Gocke quickly pulled her after one possession. 

“She wanted to go back in but after I saw her on the floor, she didn’t seem to be 100 percent, so I pulled her,” said Gocke. “It was a safety measure. We have to take care of our basketball family.”

DeForest did not return for the remainder of the game.

With DeForest out of the game, Hewitt quickly scored three baskets at the start of the final quarter to propel the Saints to a 35-25 lead with 6:38 to play. The Tillers never got any closer the rest of the way.

“It was a game changer when Gianna went out,” said Gocke, who earlier this season notched her 200^th career win in her 12^th season as the Tillers head coach. “Despite the loss, I am proud of the way our team played defense tonight. Crean Lutheran is a high scoring team and we held them to 42 points.”

The Saints also got strong games from Sydnee Norwood, Bryan and Moyer.

Norwood, a junior forward, scored 12 points and played a strong game on the boards.

“We refocused at halftime and channeled our energy from being angry to playing hard on the floor,” Norwood said.

Hewitt said the team’s play is improving.

“Our confidence is growing, “ said Hewitt. “We have gotten to know each other and we know where we have to be on the floor and we’re getting our shots,” she added.

“We didn’t hit our shots tonight, but we played great defense,” added Bryan, who scored six points before fouling out with 4:28 remaining in the game.

Deforest led Tustin with 11 points and Holder added 10 points. The Tillers also forced 13 Crean Lutheran turnovers. Savannah Brawley scored six points for the Saints, including Crean Lutheran’s only 3-pointer of the game that gave the Saints a 23-16 lead early in the third quarter.

—Tom Connolly, For OC Sports Zone