Mader leads Tipp past Tecumseh

Tippecanoe and Tecumseh were once a fierce rivalry as they both played in the Central Buckeye Conference.

As the local rivals are now in different conferences, they don’t see much of each. But when they get together, the competitiveness is very strong.

Last week, the Red Devils used 23 points from freshman Abbi Mader to lead four players in double figures as Tipp knocked off the Arrows 67-45 to even their record at 2-2 on the season.

“I was proud of the girls tonight. Early in the game, we were getting the shots we wanted; the shots just weren’t falling,” Tipp coach Julian Grasso said of the slow start in the game. “We were missing free throws and shots around the basket. But we just stuck with our game plan of Tipp basketball, which was to play together and dominate the paint.”

Tecumseh led 9-4 midway through the first period as freshman Ava Loudenback scored six points. Sammi Russell also had a big quarter as the senior guard scored six points to keep the Arrows in front 18-12.

Once the second quarter began, Tipp took over and dominated with a 23-8 period to gain the momentum heading into the half. The Red Devils took the lead with 3:59 left when Mader scored at the rim. Ella Combs followed with a three to push the Red Devils lead out to 26-22. Tipp never trailed for the remainder of the game. Reece Hoover then finished the half with six points in the final 2:14, allowing Tipp to take a 35-26 lead at the break, as Tipp outscored Tecumseh 9-2 over that stretch.

The Red Devils' dominance continued into the third as they opened the period with an 11-0 run to take a 20-point lead. A 7-0 Tecumseh run kept the Arrows around, but the Tipp lead leveled at 20 points for the remainder of the game.

Joining Mader in double figures was Emily Aselage and Liv Hiser, who each scored 11, and Hoover added 10. Russell led the Arrows with 20 points.

“Abbi is a great player with a great attitude,” Grasso said. “She is going to see a lot of different defenses, but her teammates got her the ball in transition. She is not just a shooter, and her game is going to continue to evolve.”

“Liv is very athletic and talented. She does a lot of things you can’t really coach the way she attacks the rim and hits the offensive glass.”

Tipp returns to the court, traveling to Xenia Wednesday night and Stebbins on Saturday.