Lady Warriors start fast
- Updated: December 16, 2020
Girls roundup: Cherokee County scores 32 in first quarter in win over Piedmont; Cleburne County, Hokes Bluff get wins
Tuesday’s games
Anniston 85, Munford 10
Cherokee County 77, Piedmont 44
Cleburne County 37, Clay Central 17
Hokes Bluff 48, Glencoe 30
By Al Muskewitz
East Alabama Sports Today
PIEDMONT – Leah Nelson has been coaching the Cherokee County girls basketball team for eight years and she’s never experienced a first quarter as explosive as the one her team enjoyed Tuesday night.
The Lady Warriors plugged in a trapping press that forced numerous turnovers and led to 32 first-quarter points on the way to a 77-44 victory over Piedmont, their eighth win in nine games to open the season.
The 32 points were the most the Lady Warriors have scored in a quarter this season.
“That’s the most points I think we’ve scored in the first quarter since I’ve been coaching,” Nelson said. “They shot the ball well and got after it. That’s something we’ve talked a lot about, just getting down here and getting after it, and letting our defense turn into offense.”
The Lady Warriors made it work with very little prep time. The game was moved Monday from its original Jan. 16 date the Lady Bulldogs thought might conflict with the Calhoun County Tournament.
When they went searching for a replacement for Monday’s Saks game following Monday’s announcement earlier in the day that Calhoun County system schools were shutting down athletics until Jan. 1 for COVID reasons the mutual date allowed them to move Cherokee County as well.
The Lady Warriors forced Piedmont into 33 turnovers in the game, a sin that will have the Lady Bulldogs running in practice Wednesday. Nineteen of the turnovers were steals; Mary Johnson had nine of them.
“We were worn down from last night,” Piedmont coach Terrace Ridley said, referring to Monday’s tight loss to Gadsden City. “We needed the look that they gave us, because it’s going to help us in the long run. Give us something to go back and work on at practice tomorrow. Next time we’ll be better prepared for it.”
At the beginning it was Ava Pope’s game. The Piedmont gunner scored the Lady Bulldogs’ first eight points with help from two of her three 3-pointers. But then the Lady Warriors plugged in the press, bringing a third player in to close the door, and it touched off a 19-1 run that gave them a 24-9 lead with two minutes left in the quarter.
Audrey Green scored 12 of their first 14 points in the game and had 15 of her 23 in the quarter. Karlee Perry had 10 of their last 18 points of the quarter and finished with 21. Green was 8-of-17 from the floor, 5-of-8 from 3-point range. Perry was 8-of-20 with four 3-pointers.
“One of our biggest strengths is our speed and our quick hands,” Nelson said. “And if we can use that against a team with our press, then I feel like we’ve got a good chance to create a lot of turnovers and they’ve been very successful in taking those turnovers and finishing at the basket and creating some points.”
It was the seventh time this season the Lady Warriors had scored at least 20 in a quarter. They are averaging a fraction under 20 points in the first quarter this season.
“Ever since our White Plains game we were kind of starting off bad and we decided to start off strong and we really got after it,” Green said. “That’s when I hit those 3s because we were getting after it, getting open looks.”
Pope led Piedmont with 17 points, going 3-for-5 both inside and behind the 3-point arc. Lele Ridley had 12.
Cherokee County 77, Piedmont 44
CHEROKEE COUNTY (8-1) – Mary Johnson 5 3-3 13, Lanie Williams 2 0-0 6, Audrey Green 8 2-2 23, Emily Allen 0 1-2 1, C. Coley 1 2-4 4, Karlee Perry 8 1-2 21, Sydney Johnson 1 1-2 3, Ella Garmany 3 0-0 6, Raechel Russell 0 0-0 0, Hannah Moseley 0 0-0 0. Totals 28 10-17 77.
PIEDMONT – Ava Pope 6 2-3 17, Jaycee Glover 1 2-5 5, Lele Ridley 4 2-2 12, Cayla Brothers 0 0-4 0, Armoni Perry 0 0-0 0, Caycey Brothers 1 0-0 3, Gracie Naugher 0 0-0 0, Z’Hayla Walker 0 0-2 0, Emily Farmer 2 2-2 7. Totals 14 8-18 44.
Cherokee County 32 19 14 12 – 77
Piedmont 12 17 7 8 – 44
3-point goals: Cherokee County 11 (Williams 2, Green 5, Perry 4); Piedmont 8 (Pope 3, Glover, Ridley 2, Brothers, Farmer). Total fouls: Cherokee County 19, Piedmont 11. Officials: Taylor, Kadle, Nelms.
Cleburne County 37, Clay Central 17
LINEVILLE – Haley Price scored 11 points, Brooklyn McDaniel scored eight points and grabbed 15 rebounds, and the Lady Tigers’ defense held Clay Central without a field goal until the middle of the third quarter. With her points, McDaniel now has 1,008 in her career.
Cleburne County 37, Clay Central 17
CLEBURNE COUNTY – Makenzie Frames 1 0-0 2, Jacy Littleton 0 1-4 1, Haley Price 5 0-2 11, Micah Pentecost 3 0-0 6, Brooklyn McDaniel 4 0-0 8, Haven Freeman 2 0-2 4, Kaydence Wright 1 0-0 2 Libby Altman 1 0-0 3. Totals 17 1-8 37.
CLAY CENTRAL – Jaqueria Zackery 1 0-2 2, Mia Lindsey 2 2-2 6, Maleah Lindsey 1 0-0 2, Adrina Slaughter 0 0-0 0, Autum Traylor 0 0-0 0, Quintasia McKinney 0 0-1 0, Sydnee Reaves 0 5-10 5, Emma Short 0 0-0 0, Jaycie Nash 1 0-0 2. Totals 5 7-15 17.
Cleburne County 8 15 10 4 – 37
Clay Central 1 3 4 9 – 17
3-point goals: Cleburne County 2 (Price, Altman). Total fouls: Cleburne County 13, Clay Central 10.
Hokes Bluff 48, Glencoe 30
HOKES BLUFF – Kileigh Blackwell went 7-for-10 from the free throw line and scored a game-high 13 points as the Lady Eagles overcame a slow start to beat Glencoe. Hokes Bluff was 15-of-26 from the line as a team and were 13-for-20 after falling behind 12-7 in the first quarter.
Hokes Bluff 48, Glencoe 30
GLENCOE – Katie Giles 2 0-0 5, Kinslee Gray 1 2-4 4, Kayla Traylor 2 0-6 5, Adley Massenburg 1 0-0 3, Hailey Hanners 1 3-6 5, Autumn Greene 1 2-3 4, Madalyn Amberson 0 0-0 0, Bri Beyerle 2 0-2 4, Emma Croy 0 0-0 0. Totals 10 7-21 30.
HOKES BLUFF – Charly Robinson 1 1-2 3, Madi Wolfe 1 2-4 4, Maddie Smith 3 0-0 6, Reese Hawks 1 0-0 2, Halle Davenport 3 0-0 7, Ava Dodd 0 0-0 0, Bailee Latronico 3 0-3 6, Haley Kate Wellingham 0 4-5 4, Kileigh Blackwell 3 7-10 13, Chloe Rule 1 1-2 3. Totals 16 15-26 48.
Glencoe 12 4 5 9 – 30
Hokes Bluff 7 11 16 14 – 48
3-point goals: Glencoe 3 (Giles, Traylor, Massenburg); Hokes Bluff 1 (Davenport). Fouled out: Hanners. Total fouls: Glencoe 21, Hokes Bluff 17.
You must be logged in to post a comment Login