By GARY KAUFFMAN
Fairfield recovered from a rocky start Wednesday night to handily defeat Churubusco, 48-21, in the second round of the Northeast Corner Conference tourney.
The Falcons not only missed their first four shots of the game, none of them even hit the rim. They made just three of 13 from the field in the opening quarter, but still managed to hold a 9-4 lead.
"We weren't quite mentally ready," Fairfield coach Steve Proctor said. "We downplayed 'Busco's ability. It's hard to convince teenagers that you need to take everyone seriously.
"No offense to Churubuso, but we knew we'd win the game unless we beat ourselves. We sure tried hard in the first three minutes to make it a game."
Despite their poor shooting, the Falcons stayed in the contest because the Eagles committed 10 turnovers in the first quarter.
"Defense wins and tonight we had good defense," Proctor said.
In the second period, the Falcons shot 50 percent from the field and took a 25-10 halftime lead.
Fairfield held a sizeable 28-15 rebounding advantage, including 13 offensive boards that gave them plenty of second chances to score.
For the second night in a row the Falcons had three players in double figures. Jaime Stack scored 12 and Haley Bechtel and Emily Waits 10 each.
Some early foul trouble allowed subs Becca Kropf and Kari Beasley to see plenty of playing time and they responded well. They each scored four points. Kropf had an assist and a steal and Beasley grabbed two rebounds.
"It's critical to have a bench when you're trying to win four games in five days," Proctor said. "They gave us some good minutes."
The Falcons will host Westview at 6 on Friday night in the semifinal of the tourney.
Championship games are Saturday at Central Noble.
