This wasn’t the first time a point guard named Johnson played center when their team needed it. A move made famous by Magic Johnson in the 1980 NBA Finals was replicated by Wrangell’s Christina Johnson 45 years later.
In a split series held in Wrangell on Monday and Tuesday, Feb. 3-4, the Wolves relied on some unconventional methods to contain a Craig team that had handedly beaten them in the Southeast Alaska Cultural Tournament championship game last month. Wrangell dropped the first game 55-60 but bounced back on Tuesday, winning 52-35.
Wrangell’s largest focus heading into the homestand was stopping Craig’s Sara Steffen. In the team’s prior meeting, Steffen singlehandedly dismantled Wrangell when she scored 36 points in the championship match.
“We just need to hold her to 18, not 36,” head coach Christina Good quipped before Monday night’s matchup.
And they did. Steffen was held to just 13 points all night, much in part due to Wrangell point guard Johnson sticking to her in the post the entire night. The Wrangell approach was two-fold: Johnson marked Steffen when she didn’t have the ball, and if she received a pass either Alana Harrison or Alexis Easterly would slide over and double-up on the post player.
What this strategy didn’t account for, however, was Craig’s perimeter shooting. Panther point guard Faith Horner had a career night. She drained seven three-pointers, including three in the fourth quarter, an individual performance Wrangell simply could not overcome.
The first night was filled with great moments, though none matched when Harrison heaved up a Hail Mary three-pointer from near halfcourt as the buzzer sounded for halftime. When the shot went in, the crowd erupted — both out of excitement and also due to sheer surprise.
However, Wrangell dropped the first match 55-60, though the promise of consistent scoring output provided some optimism heading into night No. 2.
The Tuesday matchup wasn’t even close. Wrangell contained Craig’s two biggest threats early. Steffan’s first four touches resulted in either missed shots or turnovers, while quick closeouts on Horner left the sharpshooting spitfire with few options other than to pass out of potential shot attempts.
Wrangell opened the second night with a hard two-three zone, an evolution of Monday’s hybrid approach. The new system offered the team a great deal of defensive flexibility down low, allowing Harrison, Easterly and Johnson to easily swarm the Panther post threat. The way you beat the two-three? Perimeter shooting, something Craig proved fully capable of the prior night.
The approach was a risky one, and through one quarter it seemed to be paying off. Horner was held to just a single triple (six less than the previous night’s tally), and Wrangell started the second quarter off with an 8-5 lead.
Wrangell’s system wasn’t perfect. Horner was able to find perimeter pockets for both herself and her teammates, but it served its purpose: It clogged Craig down low. The Panthers missed enough of their shots, and the Wolves made enough of theirs for Wrangell to head into halftime 14 to 10.
Wrangell started the second half with an incredible 16-4 run, capped by a fadeaway from Harrison that extended the Wrangell lead to 16. The Wolves headed into the fourth up 34-22. A stream of fourth-quarter scoring from Hailey Cook cemented the Wrangell win with two minutes left. When the final buzzer sounded, Wrangell led 52-35.
Up next, the Wolves play a two-game series against Ketchikan’s JV team at home. The first match will tip off on Friday, Feb. 7, and the second will take place the following night.
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