WINTHROP — East Buchanan tried so hard.
It also succeeded.
Toward the end of Friday’s 59-33 blowout win against Waukon to open the season, Grace Long’s teammates wanted to set her up for a 3-pointer.
The 6-foot senior center went 1 for 9 from 3-point range last season. She missed an attempt earlier in fourth quarter, and had everyone calling for another opportunity.
The Buccaneers got the ball back on a jump ball call with 38.9 seconds left.
A layup attempt went up as Long stood at the left-side wing, in front of the student section. The ball went out of bounds off the miss, with possession back to East Buchanan (1-0).
The pass came in and the ball was quickly shuffled to Long.
Rise. Fire. Swish.
Long’s second career 3-pointer with nine seconds remaining ended a night of mirth for IGHSAU No. 11 ranked East Buchanan.
“I don’t know if I’ve ever jumped that high in my life,†when Grace’s 3 went in, senior Peyton Bose said as both Long and Laynee Hogan laughed. “I think I could have dunked.â€
Added Hogan: “I knew she had it from when it left her hand.â€
Long’s 3 closed a 17-point, double-digit rebound effort.
“It’s just about having fun,†she said.
“A night like that for Grace — that girl puts a lot of work into her game, and last year was a big challenge to her,†head coach Kris Gruber said. “You want to talk about a kid that’s answered the bell? Stuff like that, Grace Long can do that stuff.â€
Gruber echoed Long’s sentiment about having fun on a night his team didn’t shoot well (18 for 54) but hit 11 3s and seemingly pushed through any woes with a press defense and chucking 3-pointers.
“I just love that we did it with a smile on our face,†he said. “I’ve put them through a ringer with scrimmages, and I feel like our preseason carried into this.
“No matter what challenge we’ve given them, we’ve done it together. That’s the biggest thing about tonight. No matter who was in, we were playing together.â€
East Buchanan led 12-0 to start, held Waukon (0-1) scoreless for the opening five minutes and was rarely challenged after Hogan hit a quarter-ending 3 for a 21-8 advantage.
“I thought we put a lot of trust in our teammates in that game, and we were confident the whole time,†Hogan said. “If the shots didn’t fall, we would keep shooting.
“Obviously when you shoot a couple and they don’t go down right away, you’re like, ‘Shoot, I’ve got to find something that is going to work.’ But eventually they fall, and you forget about the ones you missed.â€
The Buccaneers led 29-14 at halftime and 43-22 going into the fourth. East Buchanan was 11 for 38 from beyond the arc and 10 for 16 from the free throw line.
Hogan added 17 points and snagged most of the team’s 11 steals. Bose scored 13.
“I feel we were really connected as a team. Think we had a lot of good moments,†Long said.
