SOUTH WHITLEY — The West Noble girls basketball team is quietly having a solid season. The Chargers entered their game with Class 2A No. 5 Whitko Tuesday night boasting a 6-2 record. Determined to score a marquee win West Noble punched Whitko in the mouth with its play to start the game, but once the Wildcats found their footing they clawed their way to a 54-42 victory.

West Noble started the game hot from behind the three-point arc and keep that theme for the duration of the game. The Chargers led 12-8 after the first quarter and had established that Whitko was not going to be given anything on the court Tuesday night.

The Wildcats opened the second quarter on a 4-0 run but would find themselves tied at the break 24-24. Heading into the locker room Aly Reiff had 10 points for the home team while West Noble was led by Paige Shearer’s 10.

“We challenged the team and some individuals at half time,” said Whitko head coach Brandon Bradley. “That first half just felt like we were watching a lot of uninspired play. I’d call it a Jekyll and Hyde kind of performance. We’ve not faced much adversity over the past few games and that showed tonight.”

Bradley would not elaborate on which individuals were challenged, but whatever the message was hit home for the whole team.

Whitko came out and matched West Noble’s physicality in the third quarter, something that the team was reluctant to do in the first two quarters. Following a buzzer-beating shot from Shearer, West Noble held a 33-31 lead going into the final eight minutes. The claws finally came out for the Wildcats in the fourth quarter.

“In those last four to six minutes, when we had to do it, we felt a sense of urgency,” Bradley recalled. “We stepped it up, we were opportunistic. But we were also getting baskets at the rim. We weren’t settling for jumpers, we weren’t standing around. We were a lot more aggressive and it showed.”

Reiff exploded for 13 points in the final frame to fuel the team to victory. During a four-minute stretch of the fourth quarter Whitko went on a 19-2 run to take full control of the fading Chargers.

Reiff was excellent in the contest as she tallied 25 points, six rebounds, five blocks and four assists. Oh, and she also eclipsed 1,000 career points in the process, the first such player to accomplish that feat in Whitko girls basketball history. So, yes, it was a good night for the junior.

Whitko also used help from Jen Reiff who recorded 11 points, Brianna Cumberland added another seven. Shearer led West Noble with 19 points.

Whitko (10-1) will now have a few days off to rest and prepare for Tippecanoe Valley in a huge Three Rivers Conference showdown in Akron on Saturday.

With schedule changes from last year Whitko now has an extra few days to game plan for its rival. In years past the Wildcats had played West Noble on the Thursday before the Valley game. Due to a conflicting conference schedule for the Chargers the game was moved to a Tuesday night. Valley, however, still has a Thursday game slated this week.

Before the game Whitko and West Noble players, coaches and fans all threw newly purchased stuffed animals on the court. The animals were collected and will be donated to kids in Northeast Indiana later this week.

Video and more photos below.

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