It took the Helias Lady Crusaders some time to find their offensive groove, but find it they did.
After managing just 31 points in the first three quarters, Helias racked up 21 in the fourth to pull away for a 52-44 win against Eureka in the opening round of the State Farm Holiday Hoops Invitational.
Helias coach Alan Lepper said the key to the offensive explosion at Rackers Fieldhouse was simple.
"In the time off after the Sullivan Tournament, we talked about what's a good shot and what's a great shot," he said. "Sometimes we weren't allowing ourselves to get a great shot because we were taking a good shot. It's a slow process, but it's finally getting in their heads that, 'Hey, if I give this up, we get a great shot from somebody else.'"
It paid dividends down the stretch, as the Lady Crusaders trailed 33-31 after nine ties and eight lead changes in the first three quarters.
After failing to score on its first possession of fourth quarter, Helias scored on four straight trips to take a 39-34 edge it would never relinquish. After following that with two empty possessions, the Lady Crusaders then scored on seven of their next eight times down the court to pull away.
A pair of timeouts early in the fourth quarter led to a concerted effort for Helias to get high-percentage scoring chances.
"That's exactly what the timeouts were about," Lepper said. "It was, 'Hey, let's get to the rim and get layups, get free throws.' As a coach, though, you're wanting them to see that without you barking it out so they can become more proficient at what they're doing. But until we get to that point, as coaches we're going to have to guide them to that point."
The inside 1-2 punch of Erin Wyrick and Ellie Rockers did most of the damage for Helias in the quarter, dropping in eight points apiece. Wyrick had a team-high 17 points and eight rebounds, while Rockers had 14 points and a team-leading nine boards.
Rockers sat for a large part of the first half after getting two fouls early in first quarter. But she never picked up a third foul and scored 12 of her 14 points in the final 14 minutes of the game.
"Sometimes as coaches we bench our kids too long," Lepper said. "There's a time and a place. I knew where we were at, we had to have Ellie on the floor because she brings so much for us and when she's on the floor, good things happen. I knew with her sitting on the bench, good things weren't going to happen."
Even without Rockers, the Lady Cruaders still had a 14-10 lead after one quarter. But Eureka rallied to take a 23-19 lead into the locker room and was up 33-31 after three periods.
Lauren Alexander chipped in with 10 points for Helias, while Eureka's Annika Herbert led all players with 19 points. Natalie Archambault added 10 points and nine rebounds for the Lady Wildcats, while Kate Hillyer had 10 points and Lauren Glascock had a game-high 10 rebounds.
Helias (4-5) will play St. Joseph Benton at 7 p.m. today in a winner's bracket semifinal, while Eureka (4-4) will take on Hyde Park (Ill.) at 4 p.m. in a loser's bracket semifinal.