Special 'D'-livery

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  Sara Schmitt was superb all night for the Chiefs as well, netting 10 points, eight rebounds, three steals and a pair of blocked shots.

  Sara and Kari Schmitt were instrumental in limiting Novi's top post player, Kelsey Masserant to seven points. Masserant poured in 18 when the two teams met last week.

  Caroline Johnson kept the Wildcats in the game, scoring 14 points on 5-of-8 shooting. Johnson swished a pair of triples, one while fading away, three feet behind the three-point line.

  "We focused on not allowing them to throw the ball into Masserant," Samulski said. "When she did get the ball, we didn't let her turn to the middle like she did the last time we played them.

  "Caroline kind of got away from us tonight. She made some amazing shots."

  Canton raced to a 12-4 lead after the first quarter. Senior guard Lindsay Winters capped the early surge with a deep three with 58 seconds left in the stanza.

  The Wildcats clawed back to within 15-12 in the second quarter on Alexandra D'Annibale's putback 2:10 before the half.

  But the Chiefs closed the half strong, tallying the final six points on an inside bucket from Sara Schmitt, an Alyssa Cottrell free throw and a three-pointer by Mack with 2.6 seconds on the clock.

  The Chiefs' largest second-half lead came with 2:30 left in the third quarter when Mack buried a trey from the wing to put her team ahead 29-20.

  However, led by the sharp-shooting Johnson, Novi slowly chiseled away at its deficit, closing to 38-37 with 29 ticks to play on a Masserant putback.

  The Wildcats forced a Canton turnover on the ensuing inbounds play, setting up a classic final possession that was eventually subdued by some serious switching and textbook positioning.

  The Chiefs didn't shoot extremely well from the field (11 for 32) or the free throw line (14 for 29).

  Novi barely outrebounded the Chiefs, 24-21. Both teams committed 14 turnovers.

  Mack didn't hesitate when asked what brought her more pleasure: her 13 points or her five steals.

  "Defense," she said, smiling. "I really don't care how many points I score. I'd rather pass off to my teammates or get loose balls.

  "I just want to win."

  And she said it like she meant it.

  Absolutely, positively.