HIGH SCHOOL-OHIO

No surprise, McAuley makes most of hoops talent, depth

Adam Baum
abaum@enquirer.com

COLLEGE HILL - It was only a matter of time until McAuley’s basketball team began turning heads and grabbing headlines this season as one of the area’s top teams.

That may surprise some outsiders, but the Mohawks aren’t at all surprised by a 10-1 (4-0 Girls Greater Catholic League) start.

“It’s not really surprising,” said McAuley coach Dan Wallace. “I knew we had a lot of talent. The big thing was just meshing everything together. This group, they’re just an absolute team. The amount that they’re a true team has helped them grow quickly.”

There are a number of places one could begin to deconstruct McAuley’s success. The Mohawks are close. They have leadership, experience and youth. They have a program top-to-bottom that competes at a high level, and maybe most of all, they play defense.

“The biggest thing with this group is defensively,” said Wallace. “We’re only giving up 31 points a game. We were giving up 29 a week ago. When you’ve got a team at the varsity level only giving up 29-30 a game, that’s hard to do.

“I think we’ve got really good leadership. My experienced kids, especially my seniors, are really doing great as far as leading this basketball team and giving confidence to the younger kids.”

The Mohawks also have a wild blend of youth and experience.

“Obviously, we’ve got a freshman starting and then we’ve got a sophomore, junior and seniors starting,” Wallace said. “My first sub every day could be either a sophomore in Kieran Casey, could be a junior in Annie Klare, could be a senior in Elena Kluener and it could be a junior in Brie Kellhoffer.

“We’re deep, too. Other teams get in foul trouble or have to sub and we don’t lose a beat. My bench, I’d put my bench against any bench in the city. It’s incredible the way they go in there and do their job at a high level.”

McAuley gets a big boost each night before it even steps on the floor.

“Another thing that’s helped that I give a lot of respect to this year is my freshmen are winning games, but my JV hasn’t lost yet and they’re hammering teams by 20,” said Wallace. “And when you’re a varsity team sitting there watching your teammates that you practice with go out and hammer somebody, it just gets you excited to play.

“I mean, we’re coming out the gate with so much energy and I think a lot of that is contributed to them watching our JV kids. When we get together in practice, my JV kids are competing with a team that’s easily … I think we’re one of the top-10 teams in the state right now, and my JV comes out and battles us and puts pressure on us. The thickness of the entire program helps push us.”

The Mohawks also have one of the most talented starting lineups in the city with seniors Alexah Chrisman and Caroline Taphorn, junior Hallie Heidemann, sophomore Sydney Benning and freshman Lexi Fleming.

“Her biggest thing for me is her motor,” said Wallace of Chrisman, a 6-foot-1 post player signed with Rice University who’s averaging 12.7 points, 6.8 rebounds and 2.1 blocks per game. “She’s getting rebounds out of position she didn’t use to get. She’s in help (defense) constantly … if somebody beats a guard off the dribble our next kid is shelling body and stopping that dribble and we’re rotating. It’s the team defensive end and she’s kind of the leader of that because of her communication and her effort level.”

Wallace went on about his starters: “Hallie Heidemann is a shooter and everybody knows that. People don’t realize Hallie is my second-best rebounder and she’s tiny, but the girl times it and she’s a very deceptive athlete. You know she’s a tremendous golfer, her hand-eye coordination, but she’s got an all-around game. And she’s so tough.

“Caroline is, I think, the most underrated guard in the city. She’s guarding post players … she can guard (positions) 1-4 on the floor. She guarded Maddie Stuhlreyer from Ursuline the entire game; she just turned around and guarded Julia Hoefling like the entire game. She stopping post and turning right around running the point. I think she’s leading the GGCL in assists (3.5) and she’s still putting up eight points. She’s got a complete game and her basketball IQ is ridiculous.

“Lexi Fleming (daughter of La Salle coach Dan Fleming) and Sydney Benning — these two little girls are tiny, ferocious defenders. They turn people, take charges and their foot speed is incredible. They rebound the basketball being small and they’re willing to bang with a post player. The toughness, the foot speed and the defensive intensity those two play with and they’re only a freshman and sophomore.”

In many ways, McAuley is a perfect storm on the court, driven by a humble confidence and lofty expectations.

“We’ve been talking about this all year,” said Wallace. “I told them they were gonna be pretty good in November and December. They’re gonna be solid in January and incredible in March if we keep building.

“The expectations of this group are probably higher than any expectations of anyone looking at them from the outside. They want to be the best basketball team in the city of Cincinnati and they want to be competing for a state championship. These aren’t small goals, this group has big picture ideas but they’ve been approaching it and continue to approach it game by game.

“We just beat MND and I think there were some people surprised by that. No one in our locker room was surprised by that. Mount Notre Dame’s ranked in the state and we haven’t even gotten a look at it. Our group has a very good confidence, but also a humble understanding of how hard it is.”