BonnerSprings.com

Mark Lee

Special to the Chieftain

Members of the Bonner Springs girls basketball team are learning the importance of repetition early in the 2007-08 basketball season.

They are learning the value of shooting the basketball well, playing sound defense and getting point production from various players.

Players are understanding the contributions that a freshman can make in Chelsey Crawford who scored nine points in the basketball game on Saturday.

"As she goes, we go," coach Clay Oakes said.

Crawford has turned in big second halfs this season for the Braves. She has scored a lot of points in those quarters, and is part of the Braves nucleus, which is a bit of a work in progress this season.

"We aren't where I would like to see us," Oakes said. "If we can get into break with another win or two under our belts, then we will have a better chance to evaluate where we are."

Bonner Springs played Lansing High School at 4 p.m. in the third-place game of the Bonner Springs Metro Classic on Wednesday. The game occurred after deadline and results are available at Bonnersprings.com.

Bonner Springs lost in the second round of the tournament. Shawnee Heights defeated them 57-40 in a semifinals game played at the high school gymnasium.

Crawford scored nine points in the basketball game.

In the first round of the tournament, Bonner Springs rallied to beat Topeka-Seaman, 48-36.

The Braves went on a 14-0 run in just three minutes during the fourth quarter to win the game. Bonner Springs had trailed 34-32 with 3 1/2 minutes to go in the game, but the late surge put the game out of reach. The Braves led 46-34 in the final minute of play.

Senior Kelsey Stanbrough, who did not score at all in the first half when the Braves trailed 18-9 at intermission, ignited the Bonner Springs rally by scoring a game-high 18 points in the second half. She scored 13 of Bonner's 26 points in the fourth quarter.

Stanbrough hit two three-pointers, two more buckets and three free throws in the fourth period.

"When one of us starts doing good, all of us start doing better," Stanbrough said. "Our intensity got better."

Stanbrough led the team's offense throughout the game.

"Kelsey sparks the offense," Bonner coach Clay Oakes said. "When she goes, the rest of us feed off of her."

But Oakes said freshman Crawford and Erica Smith were pivotal in the second half comeback.

"Chelsea Crawford and Erica Smith played most of the second half and gave us some quality minutes," Oakes said. "Crawford got a lot of defensive rebounds for us. The two freshmen did a super job."

Oakes also said the two halves were completely different. Bonner Springs scored only nine points in first half and then outscored the Vikings 39-18 in the second half, which included a 26-8 explosion in the fourth quarter.

"We had no confidence and no enthusiasm in the first half," Oakes said. "We had a better halftime talk. We put it on the line. Then we got confidence in our shot."