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Lady Tigers reclaim crown
By Joe Warren
Nevada Daily Mail
NEVADA, Mo. -- The title is back. That's all that matters for the Nevada High School girls basketball team as they dismantled the Carthage Lady Tigers in the championship game of the Nevada Lady Tiger Classic Saturday, 57-38.
After a simple miscue caused Nevada to forfeit a game in last season's tournament -- keeping them from a shot at a three-peat -- the hosting Lady Tigers proved that they own their tournament this year, winning it for the third time in four seasons.
Four players scored in double figures and the offense finally started to come around for Nevada, as they used a 9-0 run to take control in the second period and were comfortably in front the rest of the way.
"We really played our best game of the week tonight," Nevada head coach Brent Bartlett said after the game. "We got it inside better, it took pressure off our guards and they shot better."
After relying on their defense to win in the first two rounds of the tournament, Nevada's offense showed glimpses of their pre-Christmas form Saturday.
Nevada (12-1) averaged 20 turnovers in the first two games of the tournament, but had only six in the championship game. Taking care of the ball led to more offense, while the defensive intensity remained and Carthage couldn't keep up.
"We feel that if we take care of the basketball, we're going to have a chance to score points," Bartlett said. "Teams can play with us when we're turning over the ball."
Nevada got a great effort on the glass, as Lindsay Rice played one of her best games of the season. Rice had 14 rebounds to go with 10 points.
All-tournament selection Jordan Webb added eight boards, while also scoring nine points. Webb was consistent all tournament, averaging 10 points and nine rebounds in the three games.
Also consistent was Amanda Wilson. Another all-tournament pick, Wilson scored 12 points to tie for team-high honors Saturday, but also grabbed five rebounds. The senior guard was the only Nevada ballhandler not plagued by turnovers the first two games, and she finished with only six in three games.
Nevada outrebounded Carthage 38-31.
Carthage (10-6) got good efforts from their inside-outside duo of Denise Taylor and Ryann Hartley Saturday.
Taylor had 17 points and Hartley 15, but Carthage only got six points from the rest of the team.
Taylor also grabbed eight rebounds, and was picked for the all-tournament team after scoring a tournament-high 58 in three games.
Senior Afton Baldwin also scored 12 points Saturday, 11 of them in the first half. The fourth Lady Tiger in double figures was Kristen Badgley, who had 11.
Nevada's key second-quarter run was as balanced as their scoring. Trailing 19-18, Wilson hit a three to give Nevada a two-point lead.
Webb scored and Badgley hit one of two free throws to make it 24-19. Webb got another bucket to go up by seven, and Rice ended the run by hitting one of two free throws.
Nevada then got a big shot to end the first half from Baldwin, who drained a trey from the left corner with one second left in the half to take a 32-22 lead at the break. Nevada outscored Carthage 21-8 in the second.
Nevada extended the lead to 40-28 after three quarters, then never allowed Carthage to get any momentum in the final period.
In other games Saturday:
Pleasant Hill held Lamar scoreless for a stretch of nine minutes in the second half, as they used a 21-0 run spanning much of the third and fourth quarters to finish third in the tournament, 55-46.
Trailing 32-24, Pleasant Hill started their run with a basket by Lacey Stoppelman with 5:23 to play in the third period.
When the run was over, the Chicks led 45-32 with only five minutes left in the game.
Melissa Yount had eight points during the run and finished with 22 to lead Pleasant Hill. Yount was named to the all-tournament team.
Stoppelman had 11 points and 13 rebounds for the Chicks.
Kayla Holland led Lamar with 19 points, and all-tournament selection Miranda Maberry added 12.
In the fifth-place game, Raymore-Peculiar hit eight of 11 free throws in the fourth quarter to hold off Joplin, 63-57.
Jessica Baker led all scorers with 19 points for Joplin, and Saysan Jones added 15, but the balanced Ray-Pec attack was too much.
Kayla Easton had 15 to lead the Panthers, while Rackel Norman added 14 and Allie Beck 12.
Ray-Pec advanced to the fifth-place game by beating Southeast earlier in the day, 70-7. Ray-Pec had all 14 girls on the roster score, as they led 30-0 after one period and cruised the rest of the way.
Joplin got into the fifth-place game by also winning earlier Saturday, topping El Dorado Springs 76-68 in overtime.
All-tournament pick Jessica Hill had 21 points and 12 rebounds to lead Joplin, while three others were in double figures.
Jones and Samantha Phillips each had 16 for the Lady Eagles and Baker added 12.
Whitney Benham led El Do with 17 points, while Bailey Bush scored 15 and Nikki Friar had 10.
Neither team played particularly sharp as they combined for 57 turnovers. El Do had 31, and blew a 47-56 lead with two minutes to play. Joplin went on a 10-0 run to take a 57-56 lead, then Benham hit one of two free throws with four seconds in regulation to force the overtime period.