Win or lose Tuesday night, Chaparral girls basketball coach Kiara Marshall knew her team would be better in the long run after facing perennial playoff contender and Class 6A foe Cedar Park Vista Ridge.
And so, the Lady Bobcats, who soared out of the gates with seven consecutive wins to earn a No. 6 state ranking in the Texas Association of Basketball Coaches Class 5A poll, for the first time in the young season will learn lessons through defeat after the Lady Rangers corralled a 54-39 victory over the Lady Bobcats in non-district action at Chaparral Gym.
“Right now, all of these games are almost like practice games. This is not going to stop us from winning a state championship. It was a challenge. (Vista Ridge) is a great team with great coaches. I mean Coach (Keith) Allen does a phenomenal job,” Marshall said postgame.
“This is great for us because we have film to show exactly where we need to be better, exactly where we can grow in certain areas,” Marshall added. “We’re not going to hang our head and be sad over it. It’s just film and we’ll get back to the drawing board.”
Visiting Vista Ridge (7-4), which spent the first couple weeks of the season ranked in the top 20 before falling out of the rankings over the weekend, outscored the Lady Bobcats (7-1) by a 13-5 margin in the third quarter to turn a close contest into a double-digit lead into the fourth quarter.
Chaparral was within nine points, 46-37, following Ivy Powell’s corner 3-pointer with 3:59 to play in the fourth. However, the Lady Rangers closed the proceedings with an 8-2 run to seal the win.
Chazlyn Detter finished with a game-high 14 points for the Lady Bobcats. Jerriyah Baines chipped in 13 points and Powell had 11 as Chaparral shot 15-of-43 from the floor.
“Chazlyn played very well tonight. We knew it would be a big game for her,” Marshall said.
Nadine Adeleke had 12 points, and Abby Seitz and Sayler Bourland each had scored 10 for the Lady Rangers, who were 22-of-54.
Neither side budged much while guarding their baskets during a low-scoring, defensive-heavy opening quarter when the teams combined to shoot 6-of-25 from the field.
Baines’ block and outlet pass to Powell set up Powell’s easy lay-up and an early 3-2 lead for the Lady Bobcats. The lead changed hands four more times during the opening 8 minutes, which closed with Chaparral holding a slim 8-7 advantage.
The Lady Bobcats were up 17-14 after Detter’s offensive rebound and putback but the Lady Rangers overcame their steepest deficit of the first half by embarking on a 7-0 run that lifted them in front 21-17 with about 2:30 remaining in the second quarter.
A pair of Baines made free throws pulled Chaparral within 21-19 at halftime.
“I definitely think that we could’ve executed a lot better. I think our execution was average at best,” Marshall said. “In games like this, everything is about execution. You’re not always going to be able to get out in transition. They made us sit back and execute, and we fell short tonight.”
In other non-district girls basketball Tuesday, Killeen (3-7) went on the road and defeated 6A Pflugerville Weiss, 49-44. Shawnta Thomas had a team-high 11 points. A’Mya Brooks and Jaiden Jones each had 10 points and La’Niya Underwood had nine.
The Shoemaker Lady Grey Wolves (4-6) also were on the road against a 6A program, falling 57-47 to Mansfield Lake Ridge.
Kenyjah Richards led the way with 15 points, Iyanna Billups netted 11, Sophia Edwin had eight, and Amber Britton and Heaven Britton scored six each for coach Elise Kea, who credited Alexius Smith and Alexis Robinson for their performances.
The away trend continued with the Harker Heights Lady Knights (8-5) visiting Round Rock Stony Point and leaving with a 38-31 win.
On the boys side Tuesday, the 6A-No. 20 Harker Heights Knights (7-2) bounced back from their Thanksgiving break loss to Ellison with a 50-41 win over Round Rock, Killeen dropped a 67-50 decision to Mexia and Shoemaker rolled through Copperas Cove 76-45.
The Grey Wolves (3-2) got at least two points from 11 players in their win, including Jaymes Brown-Peterson’s 16 points, D'Rayvion Starling’s 14 and Beres Henry’s 10.
The Chaparral boys basketball team (6-4) got a head start on the week by taking the court Monday evening. CJ Norwood had 23 points, Jeremiah Smith had 14 and Demarko Williams eight in their 62-50 victory over Liberty Hill.
Photos by Todd Martin
