| Defense steps up in win |
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| Sports | |||
| Written by David Wolman | |||
| Friday, 22 January 2010 09:00 | |||
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The defense for the Prairie View girls’ basketball team might have been a little anxious when it came to guarding the ball Tuesday, but it wasn’t for a lack of effort. That intensity displayed by the Buffalos forced Northeast-Arma out of its comfort zone on the offensive end, limiting them to just one field goal in the first half of the contest on its way to a 62-31 victory in the first round of the Pleasanton Mid-Season Tournament. “Our defense really stepped up and controlled the tempo of the game,” Prairie View coach Ron Price said. “We played good help defense, although we fouled a little too much, but that came from being aggressively wanting the ball and to get them out of their rhythm.” Aggressive play on the defensive end by Prairie View (4-5) allowed Northeast-Arma to get to the free-throw line 20 times during the first half, but the Buffalos weren’t too concerned as good execution on the offensive end allowed them to build a 29-13 halftime advantage. Prairie View found the basket on a consistent basis Tuesday, recording at least four field goals in every quarter. Jacey Moreland led the way with 16 points. Melanie Sommer added 13 points, while Candice Wilson had eight and Jessica Garrett seven. Michaela Solo and Erin Roche each chipped in six points. “We moved the ball on offense and had more patience getting the ball to the open man,” Price said. “We also tried to move without the ball to create some openings for assists. That is always nice teamwork when the assist-to-turnover ratio is in favor of the assist. Sometimes we tend to stand around and watch the girl with the ball too much.” Prairie View advanced to face Uniontown in Thursday’s semifinals. The winner will advance to face the Central Heights vs. Jayhawk-Linn victor in Saturday’s 4 p.m. championship.
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