MIller's last-minute steal lifts Blue Streaks past Huron

SANDUSKY — On a night where her rebounding was celebrated, DaShanti Miller won the game with a steal and a pass. Trailing 40-39 with 20 seconds left, Miller stole a Huron pass and found Amiyah Sturdivant for a go-ahead layup. After another Huron turnover, Miller split two free throws and the Blue Streaks (13-7) hung on for a 42-40 victory on Tuesday at the Big House. Miller led Sandusky with 11 points, but she could've had more. She missed several put backs, and Sandusky coach Richard Koonce said he could tell she was frustrated with herself. But when Sandusky needed her, Miller made the biggest play of the night. "She didn't have a good game, but she came through," Koonce said "You can be down and out, but you get an opportunity, and now you're on top of the world. That's how life is." Before Miller's winning play, the conditions were right for an upset. Huron (7-11) never trailed until the third quarte, and they led for much of the fourth. Miller was missing her layups, and Marissa Esposito, who entered the game with the second-most made 3-pointers in the SBC Lake Division (46) made just one 3-pointer. But in the fourth quarter, Sturdivant picked up the scoring slack, scoring seven of her nine points in the quarter. That includes, of course, the layup she scored off of Miller's steal. "Our girls just fought at the end," Sandusky coach Richard Koonce said. "They had to fight back, and I think in that last couple minutes it was like a dog fight. They pulled through when they needed to. That's all that matters." In addition to her game-winning steal, Sandusky celebrated Miller for breaking the single-season rebound record. Her 10th rebound on Tuesday was her 284th of the season, breaking the record Carla Young has held since 1983. Miller averages 14.4 rebounds per game, the most by any SBC player in any division. The closest player is Hopewell-Loudon's Mikayla Elmore, who averages 11.1. "She's been battling since she was a freshman," Koonce said. "She's been playing varsity ball since she was a freshman, and she's always been averaging double-digit rebounds. Nobody in all of the SBC conference is even close in rebounding." Undersized Huron typically struggles against great rebounding teams, but coach Patrick Phillips said was pleased with how the Tigers boxed Sandusky out on Tuesday. The six fourth-quarter turnovers is what cost them the game. "We shot ourself in the foot too many times, and they capitalized on that," Phillips said. "We can't turn the ball over like that." The turnover that turned into the game-winning basket was the most frustrating. Huron threw a cross-court pass that hung in the air too long, which allowed Miller to pick it off. "We preached the whole time how we have to snap our passes off and make everything crisp. They're long and athletic. You lob a pass up there, they're gonna go get it." Ava Winnestaffer scored 22 points in the loss. She hurt her ankle breaking the Sandusky press with 1:20 remaining, but she returned 30 seconds later. Early in the first half, she had more points than Sandusky. "She was killing us," Koonce said. But it was Miller who made the biggest play when her team needed her most. In theory, it could've been anyone who made the winning steal and assist. She happened to be in the right place. But Koonce believes the best players tend to make the biggest plays. That was true for Miller on Tuesday. "All the girls hustled, but she's the one that made the steal and made the assist that put us up," Koonce said. "She's phenomenal." HURON (7-11) Rae Roldan 3 0-0 9, Ava Winnestaffer 7 4-4 22, Madison Belden 1 0-0 2, Lacey Church 2 0-0 4, Ella Lamb 1 0-0 3. TOTALS 14 4-4 40 SANDUSKY (13-7) Marissa Esposito 2 5-6 10, Myasia Matthews 2 0-0 5, Dashanti Miller 3 5-8 11, Jamaria Glover 1 0-0 2, JaNeece Lee 2 0-0 5, Amiyah Sturdivant 3 3-4 9. TOTALS 13 13-18 42 Huron 15 7 5 13 — 40 Sandusky 7 11 12 12 — 42 3-point FGs: Huron 6 (Roldan 3, Winnestaffer 2, Lamb) Sandusky 3 (Esposito, Matthews, Lee)