Johnson Hopes to Fuel B-CC Girls to Success Down the Stretch

There are times when A.J. Johnson operates too quickly on the basketball court, when her superior ball-handling ability and court vision keep her out of sync with the rest of her teammates.

It's something girls' basketball coach Rob Kurtz has tried to explain to his senior star at times this season.

Despite Johnson's obvious talent and scoring ability (she leads the Barons in scoring), she has gradually learned she can't go it alone.

"She'll go as fast as she wants, but you can't go by yourself," Kurtz said. "She's a dynamic guard and makes some big plays, but what we're working on with her is to try to lead us there."

That means more than beating defenders off the dribble.

It means defense — as Johnson showed in B-CC's 51-38 win at Churchill on Monday with several steals and key rebounds. 

It means sharing the ball — as the 5-foot-4 combo guard also did on Monday by finding open shooters against the Bulldogs' zone defense.

But most of all, it means relying on her teammates, who along with Johnson have won two straight after a 72-56 win at Richard Montgomery on Tuesday.

After a loss to Northwest on Jan. 21 that dropped the Barons to 7-8 this season, the team talked about what it would take to turn things around.

Johnson said it helped her realize the Barons needed to win with contributions from everyone.

"We had a conversation and everybody was telling how they feel," Johnson said. "And everybody just agreed to put in 100 percent. That's what we did [Monday] and everybody played well. I thought it was a team win."

Johnson was right.

Center Maddie Hook blocked seven shots and Sarit Truskey, Johnson's senior backcourt mate, recorded 10 assists and seven steals.

Kurtz is thankful for Johnson's attitude, and optimistic that it can lead to more success as the playoffs approach.

"She didn't get out of it. She had a couple calls kind of go against her and [Monday] she kind of stayed in the game," Kurtz said.

"It was without a doubt her best job of leading us to a victory, which is is what we've talked about."