PAGE A14, KEIZERTIMES, DECEMBER 17, 2021
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Nepstad leads McNary to victory
M C N AR Y
HOOPS
McNary senior shooting guard Kylie Nepstad scored 28 points to lead the Celtics to a 50-44 win over Thurston (File).
SPORTS
BY MATT RAWLINGS
Of the Keizertimes
After going through some off ensive
struggles in the fi rst half, the McNary girls
basketball team got a huge lift from senior
shooting guard Kylie Nepstad, who played
the game of her life to lead the Celtics to
victory.
Nepstad poured in a career-high 28
points, 23 of which came in the second
half, as the Celtics rallied to beat Thurston
50-44 for their fi rst win of the season on
Friday, Dec. 10.
“It was good for us to get a win on
the road.” McNary head coach Elizabeth
Doran said. “Kylie was amazing all night.
We were able to get her a lot of open looks,
and she knocked them down.”
“It felt so good to get our fi rst win. I
feel like we are working better as a team
and that we are going to keep on getting
better,” Nepstad added.
The Celtics took a 10-3 lead in the fi rst
quarter, but had issues with Thurston's 2-3
zone in the opening half, which allowed the
Colts to end the half on a 14-7 run to give
themselves a 17-16 advantage at the break.
However, when the third quarter started,
the McNary off ense began to fi nd a groove.
After Thurston took their largest
lead of the game at 23-18, back-to-back
triples by Nepstad and Avery Buss put the
Celtics back on top. Nepstad would score
in transition moments later, then hit
another triple with 12 seconds left in the
third quarter to extend McNary's lead to
34-28 — Nepstad went 4-for-6 from beyond
the arc.
“It just all came to me in the moment.
I love when defense plays 2-3 against me
because I am able to get a lot of looks,”
Nepstad said. “My teammates just kept
fi nding me for open shots.”
Along with doing damage from
three-point territory, Nepstad also had four
steals in the game, which allowed her to
get some easy baskets during fast-break
opportunities.
“We ran her on the baseline while they
were playing zone, so we were able to get
her a lot of open looks. She also did well
on defense, which helped her get some
transition buckets as well,” Doran said. “We
went into a zone in the second half and did
a better job picking off some passes and
getting some transition buckets in the
second half. Our defense led to better
off ense.”
While Nepstad is primarily a perimeter
player, she was more assertive in driving to
the hoop, which led to her getting to the
foul line on a regular basis. Nepstad went
10-of-14 at the foul line, and hit four free
throws down the stretch to help seal the
win for McNary.
“I was defi nitely more aggressive. I
drove to the hoop a lot more than I usually
do,” Nepstad said.
“Down the stretch, she was the one
that was hitting free throws for us,” Doran
added.
McNary's next non-league matchup will
come at home against Liberty on Friday,
Dec. 17 at 7 p.m.
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