No contest at Griffith Sectional

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Panthers Taylor Austin goes for a layup after a steal against the Gavit Gladiators at Griffith High School on Tuesday February 7, 2012. | Jim Karczewski~for Sun-Times Media

Updated: March 9, 2012 8:22AM

GRIFFITH — Two blowouts marked the beginning of the girls Class 3A Sectional 17 on Tuesday night.

Griffith protected its home court and expelled Gavit with a 47-15 win, while in the early game, Hammond pelted Lew Wallace 61-29.

Although Griffith (16-6) flexed its muscles against Gavit, coach Tom Golumbeck knows the road to a sectional championship will get tougher on Friday night in a Panthers-versus-Panthers showdown against Roosevelt in the second semifinal.

“We told (our players) it’s going to be a different game on Friday,” Golumbeck said. “We’re playing against a talented team. We’ll need two good days of practice.”

Gavit struggled in keeping active Griffith junior guards Emma Blackard, Alyssa Gebo and Samantha Adams out of the scorebook.

Blackard knocked down three triples during the first quarter while Adams and Gebo — who scored a scoop layup over a taller defender, followed by a finish at the rim and a made free throw — had their moments in the second quarter. The Panthers stretched this offense over an extended first-half span where they outscored Gavit by 24 points.

With 1:49 remaining in the first half, Gavit freshman Shanika Thornton drilled her second 3-pointer. For the Gladiators, this marked just their second field goal in more than 10 minutes of basketball, and Thornton had both buckets.

In the opener, Hammond continued its season rebound. Senior guard Dominique Coleman scored all of her game-high 15 points from beyond the arc. In the first quarter, Coleman attempted six 3-pointers and made a pair — her six points was more than Wallace’s total (five).

Hammond, improving to 7-13 after a rough start to the season, led by 20 at half and was well on its way to facing Great Lakes Conference foe Clark on Friday.

“Generally, (this) is what you want to see,” Hammond coach Tony Chase said, “at the end of the season.”