South Warren’s girls’ basketball team has been the hottest club in both District 14 and Region 4 in 2017-18, and it continues to perform at the highest level.
The Spartans, the top seed in the District 14 Tournament, easily punched their ticket to the district championship and next week’s Region 4 Tournament with a dominating 63-20 semifinal win over fourth-seeded Greenwood on Tuesday evening at Greenwood High School.
South Warren (28-3 overall) led 19-12 at the end of the opening quarter and then inherited all of the momentum in the second by outscoring the Lady Gators 24-2 in the period. With a comfortable 43-14 lead at halftime, the Spartans were able to cruise through the second half.
“We score points and that’s all nice, but we feed off our defense,” South Warren coach Blane Embry said. “When we’re moving our feet, hitting our spots and focusing on the other team’s shooters, we’re pretty good. I really like the focus in our eyes, especially defensively. We’re just focused on holding our opponent down – and that can get you a long way in the tournament.”
Jordan McDonald led South Warren with 18 points, while Amaya Lasley scored nine and Natalie Pierce finished with seven. The Spartans forced Greenwood into 25 turnovers and outrebounded the Lady Gators 41-16 on the night.
South Warren will now face the winner of No. 2 Bowling Green and No. 3 Warren East at 6:30 p.m. Thursday in the title match.
“They’re a veteran team, but I think they have really looked forward to this,” Embry said of his squad. “I really feel like the last two or three weeks that we’ve been going through the motions and just the anticipations of this right here. That’s what you want.”
South Warren led 11-6 at the 4:02 mark of the first quarter and was later up 19-12 after one.
The Spartans started to take control in the ensuing period, as back-to-back three-pointers by McDonald and Peyton Ferry pushed their advantage to 25-12. Scores on the next two possessions quickly extended South Warren’s run to 10-0 – and put it up 29-12 at the 5:58 mark.
Greenwood finally recorded its first field goal of the second at the 5:22 mark on a layup by Megan Une, but it was still in a 15-point hole. Soon after, the Spartans built a 37-14 lead after Lasley scored twice in a row inside the paint.
By limiting the Lady Gators to just two points in the quarter, South Warren took a comfortable 43-14 lead into the locker room at halftime. McDonald was already up to 14 points at the break, while Lasley and Pierce had each scored seven.
The Spartans forced Greenwood into 16 first-half turnovers and outrebounded them 20-10.
Jacqueline Jackson carried the Lady Gators (12-18) with six points.
South Warren continued to dominate in the second half.
A basket by Natalie Pierce at the 4:17 mark of the third quarter gave the Spartans a 52-14 lead and triggered the KHSAA state-mandated running clock. From that point, South Warren used its bench and rolled to its 10th straight victory.
“You want your team to play with no fear this time of the year, and I told them they’ve gotta be aggressive,” said Embry. “You have to go down aggressive, no matter if it’s one possession or the whole game. That’s the way this team has played all year long.”
–Senior writer Tyler Mansfield can be reached at mansfield.sportingtimes@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter at @TMansfieldST.–
