A little selectiveness went a long way for Devils Lake.
The Firebirds overcame a 10-point deficit Friday to defeat host Grand Forks Central 70-63 in girls high school basketball.
Devils Lake rallied in the second half on the strength of its shooting accuracy.
“You make shots and it looks easy,’’ Firebirds coach Justin Klein said. “We have been a little streaky this year. But our shooting percentage has gone up steadily in our last eight games.’’
For the Firebirds, it was a tale of two halves.
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They trailed 35-27 at intermission after making just 10 of 29 field-goal attempts in the first half. In the second half, however, Devils Lake was 12-of-20 from the field to rally for the win.
“We were getting higher percentage shots in the second half,’’ Klein said. “We were more patient, working the ball for good shots. And we did a better job of getting to the basket.’’
Central went ahead by 10 early in the second half. But Devils Lake went on a run in which the Firebirds connected on seven consecutive shots from the field. The 15-4 spurt turned a 41-33 deficit into a 48-45 DL lead. Devils Lake never trailed again, pulling away to lead by as many as 13 points.
Devils Lake iced the win at the line, going 11-of-16 on free throws in the final 3:15. Overall in the foul-plagued game, Devils Lake was 21-of-40 on free throws while Central was 22-of-26 at the line.
While Devils Lake’s offense took off in the second half, Central couldn’t maintain its first-half pace.
“We stopped doing what had been successful in the first half,’’ GFC coach D.J. Burris said. “We were aggressive, taking it to the basket. But Devils Lake comes out playing more man-to-man defense in the second half, were more aggressive and we were back on our heels.’’
Freshman Mattea Vetsch scored 18 to lead Devils Lake. She made five 3-point shots. “She was getting some good looks,’’ Klein said. “Some nights, she doesn’t look for her shot. She’s only a freshman. But she’s a good shooter.’’
Emily Schafer added 11 points for the 8-10 Firebirds.
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Twin sisters Lauren and Liz Dub scored 20 and 16 points, respectively, to lead Central. Each had a double double, with Liz getting 12 rebounds and Lauren 10.
“They’ve been consistent for us,’’ Burris said. “But they’re the only two players who are scoring consistently for us.’’
The Knights dropped to 5-12 with the loss.
