ELIZABETHTOWN — The Red Springs girls basketball team had a chance to get itself back in the race for a Three Rivers Conference championship on Friday at East Bladen.
Instead, the Lady Eagles dug their talons into the Lady Devils to widen the distance in the standings, earning a convincing 48-32 win in Elizabethtown.
After securing an early-season win over East Bladen, Red Springs knew what it would take to come away with another victory.
But the Lady Eagles (15-1, 10-1 TRC) jumped out to an 11-0 lead in the second meeting and never looked back, earning their 11th consecutive win to take firm control of the TRC title race.
This time around, the Lady Devils (9-6, 7-3) were stifled by East Bladen’s defense, unable to finish shots around the rim.
Red Springs coach Steve Sinclair said the effort of his team made matters worse.
“The finishing part (around the basket) you could definitely see was a result of not being able to practice because of the snow and stuff. But I told them that’s not an excuse for effort,” he said.
“We didn’t give the effort that we needed to at the beginning to keep the game manageable while we were missing. Our defense was bad.”
Meanwhile, East Bladen coach Patty Evers is hoping her squad can make its mark in bringing another conference title to Elizabethtown. Coming off a second-place finish last season behind Clinton — which went on to claim the 2A state title — in the Four County Conference, the Lady Eagles are in position to claim a TRC title in their debut year.
“This group really hasn’t put anything on a banner in the gym,” Evers said with a smile.
“Now, we don’t have a comfortable lead but we have a good lead. At the same time, in this Three Rivers Conference, you just never know on any given night who is going to show up. It’s been interesting.”
Ja’Tyra Moore-Peterson scored 13 of her game-high 20 points in the first half to lead the Lady Eagles, who led 17-4 after the first quarter and 28-13 at the half.
Erica McKoy added 15 points for East Bladen, which limited Red Springs to single digits in three of the four quarters.
“At the beginning of the season it was all about defense,” Evers said. “We were in low-scoring games and then we (realized we) were too fast — we want to push the ball up the floor — and we’re athletic, so it just made sense to focus on offense.
“We put the two together (against Red Springs), clicking in the first half on offense. On defense, we were just focused in on stopping (Taya) Jones and (Taylynn Atkinson). We played outstanding defense.”
Jones scored nine of her 11 points in the second half for Red Springs and was the lone Lady Devil in double figures. Selina Franco added eight points for the visitors.
Losers in four of their last five games, the Lady Devils hope to find some consistency down the stretch in order to maintain its position as the second-best 2A squad in the league.
“We have to figure it out real quick. We’ve had multiple situations with people out but it’s about getting everybody back and everyone getting committed,” Sinclair said.
“Next week is a big week for us with three games. We have to keep working and getting better, trying to figure it out on the go.”
West lifts Red Devils over Eagles
Nichorie West made a pair of free throws with four seconds left to lift the Red Springs boys basketball team to a 55-53 road win at East Bladen on Friday.
West, who finished with 11 points and three steals, pulled down an offensive rebounding in the final seconds and was fouled before knocking down the game-winning freebies for the Red Devils (12-3, 9-1 TRC.
Monte’ Wilkerson scored a team-high 17 points, pulled down five rebounds, logged five steals and dished out three assists for Red Springs. Caleel Mitchell added 12 points, six rebounds, three assists and three steals.
