Sports Archives — The Altamont Enterprise, January 12, 2012
Harvey becomes fifth 1,000-point scorer in BKW history
BERNE –– Liz Harvey went to the free-throw line as a packed crowd anticipated her 1,000th career point for Berne-Knox-Westerlo. She was nervous. The Bulldogs’ fans were silent.
Harvey’s foul shot fell off the rim. The crowd gasped.
After scoring 21 points in the first half against Middleburgh on Friday, Harvey, a junior, needed her Section II leading points-per-game average of 24 to become the fifth 1,000-point scorer in school history. She missed two three-pointers and that nail-biting free throw in the third quarter before draining her only three-pointer of the night for 1,002 career points.
With a commanding 42-to-17 lead, Harvey’s teammates showered her with hugs and screams. There may have been some tears of joy.
Harvey admitted after the game that she forced up some shots because she didn’t want to disappoint her family and friends that were in attendance. “I was nervous,” she said. “It’s not like it was my last game, but I really wanted to get it tonight because everyone was here.”
A true competitor, Harvey wants to win at all costs. Scoring 1,000 points is important to her, but not as vital as having a successful season with her team. She was quick to compliment her teammates, saying, “I couldn’t have done this without them. They’re getting me the ball.”
Ultimately, Friday night was about Harvey, but BKW played another excellent team game as it has all season. The Bulldogs won, 60 to 35, to remain unbeaten. On Tuesday, BKW (9-0) won at Duanesburg, 57 to 46, and Harvey scored 27 points.
“We work so well together,” said Harvey, who is in her third season. “Our goal is to go undefeated and we’re going to try hard to do that. We want to go all the way.”
Harvey made an immediate impact on BKW when she started as a freshman, helping the team get to the Class C finals. Since then, Head Coach Tom Galvin has watched Harvey become a complete player; she scores 40 percent of the Bulldogs’ points.
“She used to just want to score, but now she’s an all-around player,” said Galvin, mentioning Harvey’s great passing, tight defense, controlled ball handling, and movement in the post. “Her competitiveness really drives her. She wants to beat you at whatever it is that you do.”
With the ability to beat defenders from anywhere on the court, Harvey is a tough guard. One moment she’s quickly attacking the basket, and the next, she’s hoisting up a long jump shot. Defenders can’t stop Harvey from scoring; they hope only to contain her.
“My game changes all of the time,” Harvey said. “Sometimes I shoot the three, sometimes I drive. It’s whatever. It’s different.”
Senior Jean Farnam, who’s been Harvey’s teammate for a few years, told The Enterprise, “She’s great with the ball. But, she doesn’t just look for herself, she wants to get the ball to her teammates, too. Liz is all about the team.”
Jealousy is not an issue because Harvey’s teammates know how much talent she has. Harvey isn’t the point guard, but the offense is built around her playmaking abilities. “Her job is to score for BKW,” Galvin said.
When Harvey came in as a freshman, Galvin said that she couldn’t shoot three-pointers. After a little work, Harvey learned quickly and eventually became a great three-point shooter.
“She has a great basketball IQ,” said Galvin. “She knows what she needs to do. She’s one of the best that I’ve ever seen. A very special player and person.”
Harvey joins Ted Pitcher (1,024 points), Sarah Domermuth (1,525), Kim Sikule (1,152), and Andrea Van Dyke (1,104) on the all-time list. Domermuth and Sikule both set their marks in 2004 as senior teammates on a team that made it to the state semifinals. Galvin, who coached that team, sees comparisons to 2012.
“My current team is a lot like 2004 in the way they go about their business,” Galvin said. “It’s all business, all of the time.”
The Bulldogs’ biggest asset is its full-court pressure defense. It took Middleburgh a lot of effort to get past half-court on Friday. BKW’s press causes turnovers and easy baskets the other way.
“The more pressure we put on our opponent, the more they tend to mess up and throw bad passes,” Farnam said. “We just hustle.”
Down the road, Harvey hopes to break Domermuth’s record of 1,525 points. With the rest of this season and her senior year remaining, odds are heavily in her favor. Farnam believes that Harvey will end her BKW career with at least 1,600 points.
Harvey said that scoring 1,000 points will be a larger accomplishment to look back on when she’s older, but, for now, an undefeated season and a deep run through the playoffs is more important. The Bulldogs have outscored their opponents by 192 points so far.
“The excitement never ends,” Harvey said.
— By Jordan J. Michael