Yorkville junior Lauren Daffenberg does her best work before she even touches the ball.
Drifting around the perimeter, the 5-foot-11 guard is always at the ready, her hands in the shooting pocket.
The rest is simple repetition. Splash, rinse, repeat.
“Any time she’s on the court she has her hands up,” Yorkville coach Kim Wensits said. “That’s what you want from any player, especially a girl that shoots as well as Lauren.”
Daffenberg burst onto the scene last year as a sophomore as the second-leading scorer on a 25-win team.
She’s picked up right where she left off. Daffenberg’s shooting was on display Thursday night during a 54-33 win over Conant at the York Thanksgiving Tournament in Elmhurst.
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Daffenberg scored a game-high 22 points, knocking down four of her first six 3-point attempts. Katie Nolan added 12 points and seven rebounds, while Lindsay Harrison had 10 points and seven rebounds for the Foxes (3-0).
Daffenberg’s quick catch-and-shoot game?
There’s a practical reason for it.
“It’s definitely from playing against quicker teams,” she said. “You play those teams, you don’t get your shot if you’re not ready to shoot it. I’ve developed that over time.”
Her first-year coach can confirm Daffenberg’s dedication.
“She’d be in the gym at 6 a.m. on game days last year,” said Wensits, an assistant at Yorkville for six years. “She has put in a ton of time. All the girls have, but she’s dedicated so much to basketball.”
It paid off in September, when Daffenberg verbally committed to NCAA Division II Hillsdale College.
“That was definitely a load off,” Daffenberg said. “It’s easier to play not worried about your future.”
Daffenberg was at her best Thursday during the game’s two most decisive stretches.
Slow-starting Yorkville missed its first five shots and turned it over twice. Daffenberg got the Foxes out of that funk, swishing a pull-up 3-pointer.
Next time down she pump-faked at the arc, took one dribble and buried a 15-footer, then later came off a screen and hit a 3-pointer from the left wing for a 17-6 lead.
“We’ve talked about with her that once you shot fake that’s when you drive around defenders,” Wensits said. “Lauren’s developed all aspects of her game.”
Yorkville led 21-12 at halftime, but saw that lead whittled to 23-18.
Daffenberg took over from there. She hit a 3-pointer from the top of the key and made a tough shot in traffic in the lane. When Nolan kicked it out to Daffenberg for a 3-pointer from the left wing, the Foxes were in command leading 34-21.
Yorkville advanced to the tournament championship game against Trinity.
“We’re pretty excited about our start,” Daffenberg said. “It’s good to see better competition.”
It’s Yorkville’s first year at the York tourney, which is predominantly made up of Class 4A schools. The Foxes lost in overtime to Neuqua Valley in last year’s regional final and return four starters from that team.
“We wanted to beef up our schedule,” Wensits said. “When we get into regionals we’re in 4A now, and we’re playing bigger schools. We have to start seeing them during the season. The girls have bought in.”
Joshua Welge is a freelance writer for The Beacon-News.