Rebounds and fast breaks were the name of the game for the Surge during the home opener. The St. Louis Surge dominated on the boards to defeat the Atlanta Tarheels 92-65 on Saturday, May 4, 2013, in front of a crowd of over 2,000 fans at the University of Missouri – St. Louis.
Jaleesa Butler, post, and Daria Frazier, forward, started the season off right. Both achieved a double-double with 13 and 11 rebounds and 16 and 12 points respectively. But make no mistake, this was a team effort. Scoring for St. Louis was spread among a handful of players including Gillian Letsche, 17 points, and Tanisha Gilbert, 16 points. St. Louis had a team total of 25 assists, led by Tanisha Gilbert and Daria Frazier with five each.
The Surge struggled to get their footing in the first quarter. Point guard Bianca Beck said that “lack of communication on defense and rushing offensively” were to blame for the team’s slow start. The first sign of a turnaround came from a steal by guard Shanika Butler. She went end-to-end only to be fouled on her drive to the hoop, but came out with two free throws just before the two minute-mark. At the end of the first quarter, Atlanta led 22-20.
St. Louis continued the momentum into the second quarter. A few minutes in, the team made a couple wild turnovers as they got rid of the last of their nerves. The Surge started their rebound and fast break habit about halfway through and led 39-33 at halftime.
“We have a very athletic team. We like to get up and down the floor,” said Gilbert. Even the post players were getting in on the Surge’s running game. With 1:38 left in the third quarter, post Gillian Letsche stole the ball and was fouled going in for the layup. She sunk the second of two free throws. St. Louis continued to pull away and led 67-49 at the end of the third.
The Tarheels started the last quarter with full court pressure, but eventually backed off when it became apparent that there was no way to compete with the well-conditioned Surge. Shooting 48 percent from the field, St. Louis shot 14 percent better and made more attempts than Atlanta. The Surge pulled down 61 rebounds, almost double what the Tarheels did. St. Louis finished their first home game of the season with a 27-point win.
According to Beck, the team came in prepared for action and “as long as we communicate, everything will work itself out.”
Click here to view the replay of the entire Surge Home Opener from Saturday, May 4, 2013, on City Link TV.
