Lilly Toppen asked Kankakee Valley coach Doug Nelson to run the play.

And she delivered.

The sophomore guard knocked down a key 3-pointer Tuesday night as the Kougars posted a 29-17 Northwest Crossroads Conference win against visiting Highland.

Nelson has seen Toppen progress in the last handful of games.

“She called her shot, basically,” Nelson said. “That’s something a month ago she wouldn’t have done. She’s really maturing, and that’s fun to see.

“The offense and defensive effort will come. The leadership part is what I’m excited about.”

Toppen finished with 12 points against Highland (11-7, 2-2), including three first-quarter 3-pointers. Her fourth came with 4:19 left in the game, pushing the lead to 26-17 for Kankakee Valley (8-6, 3-0).

On the previous possession, Toppen recognized three Highland defenders collapsed when junior forward Taylor Schoonveld drove, leaving Toppen open in the corner. The Kougars “executed beautifully” the next time down the floor, Toppen said.

“It’s more helpful when I see that,” Toppen said. “I know what’s going to happen, and I’m going to have a good look, so I’m more confident in it.”

Kankakee Valley limited Highland to five baskets, including one in the third quarter and none in the fourth.

“We played more man-to-man in the second half, got out of the trap a little bit,” Nelson said. “They figured it out. We had pretty good half-court man defense. If we could put the ball in the basket, that’s been our issue all year. But all we can do is keep getting stops and get opportunities.

“We have some length, we have some athleticism and we work hard. I wish there would be more offensive points. It would make my heart beat a little easier. But the defensive end wasn’t bad.”

Chloe Churilla led Highland with 11 points. Toppen said one of Kankakee Valley’s goals was to hold the junior forward under her season average, which was 16.6 points.

With his team having won five straight games, Highland coach Chris Tomcsi was disappointed with the loss. He was proud of the Trojans’ defensive performance but said it was “one of those nights” on offense.

“We haven’t played a team this athletic and quick in a while,” Tomcsi said. “We knew they were going to 1-3-1 (zone) us at some point. That’s what they do, especially against us. It threw us off our game a little bit. We got in our head a little too much and missed a lot of opportunities.

“But it starts with KV. They worked their butt off and put us in that position. We’ve been a pretty resilient group all season long, and for us not to be able to fix it at some point hurt us. I told the girls afterward, you hold KV, any quality team, to 29 points, you have to walk out of the gym with a win.”

Kankakee Valley extended its winning streak in the series against Highland to seven. The Kougars also remained one of two teams undefeated in the conference, along with Andrean (12-0, 4-0).

“It gives us a chance,” Toppen said.