CL girls hoops honor top 40 players of all time, topple St. Anthony

by JEFF NORTON SPORTS EDITOR

Despite all the pomp and circumstance of the halftime celebration, the Chisago Lakes girls basketball team was able to stay focused and race out to a big lead over St. Anthony Friday, December 19 in the Ward Gym. The halftime celebration was a culmination of 40 years of Chisago Lakes girls basketball. The program recognized the top 40 players from their history and invited them to the halftime ceremony.

Nearly 15 of the 40 players were able to make the event. The current varsity team, which features some girls who could be on that list eventually, treated the guests to an entertaining first half. They relied on their two primetime scorers in Sarah Greene and Carmen Backes, but they also got a big boost from senior Dani Berg’s outside shooting. She had been cold at times this year, and the ‘Cats showed what kind of team they can be if she’s on her shot. She finished with 12 points on four-of-six shooting from beyond the arc. Backes and Greene got their points on a mix of fast break lay ups and tenacious drives that resulted in free throws. On the game, St. Anthony only attempted four free throws, making two of them.

The Wildcats went 19-of-27 from the charity stripe. The difference in free throws made was essentially the difference in the game. By halftime, the Wildcats led by 16 points at 38-22. In the second half, the Huskies never threatened the Wildcats too much as the three big scorers kept them at bay until reserves started logging minutes. Alli Carlson also added six points for Chisago Lakes as they won 65-47.

The win snapped a three game losing streak for the Wildcats, as they had dropped a 59-51 non-conference game to New Prague earlier in the week, and improved their record to 4-3. They’ll take Christmas off before heading out to Monticello for the holiday tournament Monday and Tuesday, December 29-30.

Their opponents are Minneapolis Washburn and Perham.