NEW WASHINGTON — It was only fitting that Madison would get another shot at Tiffin Columbian in the Division III girls basketball district semifinals.
It was a loss to the Tornadoes in late-December that turned the season around for the Rams.
Madison made the most of its chance at redemption with a 48-29 win Tuesday night at Buckeye Central High School.
“The funny thing was (the first meeting) was the game that we thought propelled our season,” Madison coach Doug Rickert said of that 55-41 loss in Tiffin on Dec. 27.
“We had a really rough film session after the first time we played them and we had some ‘come-to-Jesus moments’ and we won nine out of 11.
“This was the … opportunity to show them that (we) can play basketball.”
Second-quarter surge
Madison (15-8) fell behind 5-0 in the opening 90 seconds, but battled back to take a 12-10 lead after the first quarter.
The Rams opened the second period with a game-changing 14-0 run and took a 26-10 lead on Morgan Cook’s offensive rebound and putback with 2:35 showing in the half.
Columbian (14-10) scored back-to-back buckets to make it 26-14 and had a chance to cut into the lead even further but Madison’s Maddie Berry came up with a steal near midcoast and knocked in a 3-pointer from NBA range as time expired for a 29-14 halftime advantage.
“That was huge,” Rickert said of a second quarter that saw the Rams outscore the Tornadoes 17-4. “Maddie’s shot was big because they were getting a little momentum there, then you hit that shot at the buzzer.
“You get lucky once in a while.”
In control
Berry connected on her fourth and final trey early in the third quarter for a 32-14 lead and the Rams were never seriously threatened again.
“We knew we had it in us,” Berry said. “We couldn’t let down.”
Berry led the Rams with 14 points. Addyson Powell added eight and Kaley Bowman had seven. Cambree Howe and Morgan Clark each had six in a balanced Madison attack.
Historic season
The fourth-seeded Rams will play for a district title for the first time since 2005. Madison will take on top-seeded Toledo Central Catholic at 3 p.m. Saturday at Buckeye Central.
“They’ve accomplished a lot,” Rickert said. “They didn’t win the (Ohio Cardinal Conference) but they had the best league record they’ve ever had. They went 11-3 in the league.
“These eight girls go to practice and work their butts off and they haven’t made any excuses. … They don’t flinch.”