The habits of the Wright City girls basketball team have almost become predictable.It was an all-too-familiar scene for Coach Fred Ross, as he watched his team quickly become impatient and ditch the offensive plan.“On our first two looks we did exactly what we wanted to do,” said Ross, following his team’s 47-12 loss. “But then we stopped. We only took the ball to the basket twice. After that, we weren’t trying to attack and draw fouls.”Much as they had in previous games, the Wildcats ran the desired play the first couple times down the floor. But when it didn’t result in a basket, they began improvising, which led to turnovers.“Sometimes there’s a lack of communication, and we need to make sure we know what play we’re running,” said senior Orlanda Hill, who was playing in her second game back from a first-semester absence. She has been a step slow, falling short of her 15-point-per-game mark from last season.“I’m not game-ready yet,” acknowledged Hill. “With the game being faster paced than practice, it’s taking some getting used to.”But on Monday it appeared Silex wanted to play a slower tempo, which would have been favorable for Wright City. Instead, the Wildcats began rushing their offense and forcing shots.“We’ve got to be able to take advantage of a slow game like that,” said senior Kyle Winfrey.They failed to score a single basket in the first half, trailing 15-0 after one quarter and 26-0 by intermission.“It’s a lot of disappointment when you give up a lot of points right away,” said Winfrey.Not until the 5:19 mark of the third quarter did the Wildcats erase the goose egg on the scoreboard, when senior Kyle Winfrey knocked down a jumper.Wright City then rattled off six unanswered points, before Silex put on the brakes to lead 42-6 after three quarters.Ross says he had scouted and the Wildcats had specifically prepared to face the Owl’s press.“We knew how to break their press, but our girls didn’t execute,” said Ross. “This court worked well for them trapping, because there’s not as much room for cutting.”Winfrey led the Wildcats with six points, as senior Orlanda Hill struggled to return to her full form.Ross says the focus will shift to conditioning, as the Wildcats are showing an inability to compete against more athletic teams. He was particularly concerned with the team’s lack of commitment to practices over the break, with all but one player missing at least one session.“We’ve got a lack of cohesiveness because we haven’t practiced together,” said Ross. “Great teams are willing to make those sacrifices and put in the work.”Wright City was scheduled to face No. 6 Louisiana next on Wednesday night.A win is necessary to move on, as there is no seventh-place game in this tournament.HILL SHOOTSDerrick Forsythe photo.