Sensing the opening in the press of players is an instinct that comes with time and experience.

For Mount Si junior Molly Sellers, that instinct is coming into sharp focus.

“I look for my shots,” said Sellers, who has emerged as the Wildcats’ main sharpshooter, averaging 11 points per game in Mount Si’s last seven contests and frequently doing duty as the team’s leading scorer.

“I know I can make them.”

A travel club player in the off season, Sellers came in with a seven-day-a-week training regimen to improve skills in her focus sport this season. She’s played team ball since seventh grade, following in the footsteps offer sister Shelby, who also played at Mount Si. As such, she is the go-to girl on the outside for the Wildcats, and frequently delivers, though she’s still honing her game.

Now, she’s working on the timing of shots, and like others on her team, wants to perfect Wildcat basketball, balancing strengths and weaknesses.

“I want to see us play together as a team,” Sellers said. “Winning, knowing at the end of the game we played our hardest, we went 110 percent, we played the full game.”

Interlake loss

Sellers led Mount Si scorers with nine on Wednesday, Jan. 11, in Mount Si’s home league loss to Interlake,  35-47. The first period ended with the Mount Si up by one, 9-8, but the Saints got into passing gear in the second. The scoreboard told the tale: The Wildcats were 20-23 at the half, down nine, 26-37, at the end of the third quarter. Interlake senior Aspen Winegar led all scorers with 16 points.

“You’ve got to give it to Liberty—they shot the ball pretty well,” Mount Si coach Megan Botulinski said.

Opportunities just didn’t manifest Wednesday night for the ‘Cats. Sellers said the team wasn’t clicking like they normally do.

Mount Si must be among the top four teams to host a home KingCo playoff game, a goal for the coach.

“We’re still in that spot with that loss tonight,” Botulinski said.

The coach praised freshman Elizabeth Prewitt, who again came off the bench hard.

“She does what we ask her to,” Botulinski said.

With Mount Si moving against rivals like Mercer Island, the Wildcats hope to renew that “clicking.”

“We need to bring it to them,” Sellers said. “We just need to play our game.”

Mount Si faces Mercer Island on the road tonight, 7:30 p.m.. On Wednesday, Jan. 18, Mount Si hosts Interlake. Game time is 7:30 p.m. On Friday, Mount Si is at Lake Washington, game time is 6:30 p.m.

• You can follow Mount Si girls basketball at http://www.mshsgirlsbasketball.com/default.htm