IHSAA girls basketball What we learned: Talia Harris took over, Lilly Bischoff 'didn't flinch'

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Another week of Indiana girls high school basketball is in the books. Here's what we learned.

More: HSE looks to Maya Makalusky to take over. And that's what she did in OT vs. Fishers

A 'student of the game' Talia Harris coming into her own as a leader

Though she stepped up in critical moments prior to this season, Fishers senior Talia Harris spent her first three seasons playing behind Hailey and Olivia Smith, both of whom could take over a game as necessary. But the twins are now freshmen guards for Ball State and while the Tigers remain loaded with talent, Harris is the one they need to step in as their go-to scorer, the one they can look to for leadership and clutch performances.

It has taken time for the 5-8 guard to grow into that role, coach Lauren Votaw said, recalling conversations between the two wherein Harris would say what she's feeling and her coach would tell her what she's seeing and what the team needed for her.

"It's taken some tough ones (and) we've had some bumps this season so far," Votaw continued, "but she always wants to learn. She's a student of the game."

Harris took full ownership of those leadership responsibilities in Saturday night's 70-67 overtime loss to Hamilton Southeastern, displaying her development as a leader and exercising her ability to carry the Tigers in big games.

Eight days after lighting up Noblesville for 24 points and eight assists, Harris reset her career-high again vs. the Royals, racking up a game-high 29 points with nine field goals and a 9-for-10 mark at the line. Her blistering performance was highlighted by a second-half stretch wherein she accounted for 16 of Fishers' 18 points, including a six-point spurt that pushed the lead to 54-49 with 4:19 remaining.

Harris flows within the offense, finding space and converting passes into points, but can create for herself, as well, exploiting slivers within the defense to get to the basket and finish around the rim. She's a talented scorer, but knows when to look for her teammates, as well, averaging nearly five assists per game.

The future Division I guard (she has yet to commit but holds multiple D-I offers) brings a unique skill set that's difficult to defend, Votaw observed, and did a good job Saturday of taking what was given to her.

Credit to HSE for making a few adjustments to contain Harris in overtime — "She's always been tough whenever we play her," Maya Makalusky said — but through the first three-plus quarters, it simply didn't have an answer for No. 15.

"Talia has steadily grown from her freshman year and it was really fun for me to watch her have that performance tonight," Votaw said. "Obviously, I'm really sad that it didn't turn out the way we wanted it to, but I'm just really proud of her growth. … She's adjusted well and I'm excited to see the rest of December and into January how she continues to grow."

More Mudsock tidbits

• There really isn't anything quite like the Mudsock game. Tremendous crowd, great energy. It had all the emotion and intensity of an elimination game, and the scene afterwards (between the HSE celebration and Fishers' dejection) felt like it, too.

• Fishers' Nevaeh Dickman was really good on both ends of the floor. She held her own against Makalusky defensively (a matchup to keep an eye on if/when these teams play again in February) and accounted for eight of her 18 points between the fourth quarter and overtime.

• Morgan Roberts scored a big bucket late in overtime for Fishers, converting a turnover into a fast-break layup that cut the score to 66-65 with 37 seconds left. She and Dickman took turns guarding Makalusky 1-on-1 and did a good job against her.

• One more Tigers notable: Joirdyn Smith had a really good first half. She was hounding HSE and creating chaos defensively, and hit a pair of 3-pointers in the second quarter.

• Makalusky was held to just six points between the third and fourth quarters. She remained impactful both defensively and on the glass, but Kayla Stidham picked up the slack offensively, scoring 12 of her 17 points in the fourth quarter. It was similar to what the sophomore did vs. Noblesville a few weeks ago.

• Kayla Brinley was huge for the Royals, scoring eight points off the bench, including a jumper in the final minute of regulation to make it a two-point game. She also delivered in overtime. Down 3, Fishers tried attacking the basket for a quick two, but Brinley helped break up the play. She was fouled and sank both free throws to ice the win.

"She's always in the right spot," coach Brian Satterfield said of Brinley.

• Sophomore Antonette Green also stepped up defensively for HSE in the second half. The Royals have their big three, but they have a strong supporting cast that's only gotten better over the past couple months.

• HSE won that game Saturday with starting point guard Kennedy Holman unavailable for most of it due to foul trouble.

Bischoff takes on that 'floor general mentality' for Center Grove

Center Grove coach Kevin Stuckmeyer made sure to pull junior Lilly Bischoff aside Saturday afternoon to praise her performance as the floor general in the Trojans' 65-48 win over Lawrence North.

That was among the most defensive pressure they've seen this season, Stuckmeyer said. "And she didn't flinch. She just put us in position to stay calm and collected."

The 5-9 guard was truly excellent against the 5th-ranked Wildcats, finishing with a career-high 18 points on 8-for-10 shooting with eight rebounds, four assists and a steal. She was charged with five turnovers, but overcame those missteps with a flurry of key baskets, including a layup to bust up a Lawrence North rally late in the first half and a 3-point play in the third that extended the score to 43-28.

"She knew when to attack and was opportunistic, taking what was there," Stuckmeyer said. "She knew when to trust her teammate and get it to them just to relieve the pressure and get the reversals. But yeah, she was fantastic."

Bischoff took the lead, but it was a very well-rounded performance by Center Grove, which shot 59% as a team (23-for-30 inside the arc) with four players scoring in double figures: Bischoff, Audrey Annee (14), Rachel Wirts (12) and Ava Grant (10). Aubrie Booker added nine points and six assists.

Every time it looked like LN might be building towards an extended run, Center Grove strung together a couple buckets and some stops to regain control and extend its lead.

"That was the epitome of our mindset," Stuckmeyer said. "We had the right mentality, the focus and our girls didn't panic. They knew teams like that were going to make a run. They're too good not to. You just have to play the next possession. We were able to do that and when the time came to make a shot, we did."

Center Grove closes out 2023 with Perry Meridian, Bloomington North and its Carol Tumey Holiday Tournament, then opens the new year on Jan. 6 vs. Jennings County.

Avon ends its drought vs. Brownsburg

The Orioles ended a 27-game losing streak by rallying from a six-point fourth-quarter deficit to beat rival Brownsburg for the first time since Jan. 3, 2008 on Friday. Heck of a win for Avon (5-6), which was led by sophomore Makaylee Butts with 22 points (7-of-11 shooting), five rebounds and a couple steals. Aniah Smith tallied 18 points and nine assists, while Nevaeh Wren picked up six rebounds.

Avon has won three of its last five, with the losses against HSE and Westfield.

Odds-and-ends

• Gibson Southern's Chloey Graham sank a last-second shot to beat Roncalli on Saturday, 62-59. She finished with 20 points, three assists and three steals, while teammate Gabby Spink tallied 29 points, seven assists and five rebounds.

• Crown Point's Ava Ziolkowski became the eighth player in program history to reach 1,000 career points last week. She scored 55 points(!!) in a win over Hammond Morton.

• Another really good game scheduled for Tuesday at Lapel with the Bulldogs hosting 3A's Hamilton Heights. Laniah Wills and Madelyn Poynter vs. Camryn Runner should be quality entertainment.

Follow Brian Haenchen on Twitter at @Brian_Haenchen.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: IHSAA girls basketball: More on Mudsock, Center Grove big win, more