Staff photo / Dan Hiner Garfield’s Mandy Cardinal (10) goes up for a shot during the fourth quarter of a game against Cardinal Mooney during Monday’s South Range Holiday Hoops Showcase in Beaver Township.

BEAVER TOWNSHIP — It took a while for offenses to wake up for the Cardinal Mooney and Garfield girls basketball teams.

But after 20 minutes of play, the G-Men finally got going. They took control of the second half to win 45-26 in the opening game of Monday’s South Range Holiday Hoops Showcase.

Garfield head coach Aaron Gilbert said the sluggish start could have been a result of the game’s time. The players were on a holiday break, and the opening tip occurred at 10 a.m., both oddities for high school basketball.

“It’s just a little bit different atmosphere,” Gilbert said. “Over the years, we haven’t played real well over here – I think it’s the first time in three years we won a game in this tournament. It’s just kinda nice to see. The way we played in the second half is more true to who we are.”

It was a sloppy start for both teams. Turnovers, missed shot opportunities and offensive rebounds hurt both squads.

However, Cardinal Mooney (0-9) had some early success converting turnovers into points. It allowed the Cardinals to take a 10-6 lead into the second, but the offense stalled in the second.

The G-Men (5-2) outscored Mooney 9-4 in the second and led 15-14 at halftime.

A three by Payton Soltis midway through the third gave the G-Men a 22-21 lead.

Garfield’s defense led to some easy baskets on the other end. The Cardinals ran into traps and had difficulty breaking the press. That success defensively allowed the G-Men to take a 31-23 lead into the fourth quarter.

With a little breathing room, Mandy Cardinal took over for Garfield. She scored five points in the fourth as the G-Men outscored Mooney 14-5 to break away.

“Our depth kinda came into play a little bit with experience,” Gilbert said. “Like I said, in the second half, we were a little bit more true to ourselves. We were able to pressure the ball and make things happen. It’s more of an opportunistic press, it’s not necessarily a force press. When another team makes a mistake, do something about it.”

That defense limited the Cardinals to one double-digit scorer, Julia Diorio, who ended with 13 points. Cassidy Carlson was Mooney’s second-leading scorer with seven points.

Cardinal led all scorers with 15 points for Garfield, and Soltis finished with nine points.

“With this group, some of these players got thrown into the fire as sophomores and freshmen because of graduation and injuries and things,” Gilbert said. “They’re battle-tested by now, and especially for our seniors, this is a group who has stuck together. They had a four-win season and an eight-win season, and now they’re trying to eclipse that number. It really means a lot to them to have success this year.”

Cardinal Mooney head coach Dominic Diorio was unavailable after the game. He was on the bench for the JV game, which started after the varsity contest.