Lady Panthers take bidistrict title handily, await area

Posted 2/17/21

Deliberate is the best word to describe the Lady Panthers’ 73-31 win over the Rivercrest Lady Rebels last Thursday in Sulphur Springs. Coach Dale Clement’s charges came out ready to play and used a 25-point first quarter to propel them to a bidistrict title.

Update: The Lady Panthers are set to play Lindsay on Saturday, Feb. 20 at 8 p.m. in Pattonville.

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Lady Panthers take bidistrict title handily, await area

Posted

Deliberate is the best word to describe the Lady Panthers’ 73-31 win over the Rivercrest Lady Rebels last Thursday in Sulphur Springs. Coach Dale Clement’s charges came out ready to play and used a 25-point first quarter to propel them to a bidistrict title.

Senior Bella Crawford scored in just about every manner possible in that opening quarter. She put in 18 points – including two 3-pointers, two steals and scores and two offensive rebound put-backs – in the opening eight minutes.  

The Alba-Golden press exacted a toll on the young Lady Rebels squad from Red River County. A half dozen turnovers in the backcourt were directly converted to points by the aggressive Alba-Golden side.

Beyond winning the turnover battle, the Lady Panthers’ offensive rebounding also fueled their early dominance. Most notably was the experience of Autumn Whitten in securing backside rebounds. 

The fourth seed out of District 16-2A, the Lady Rebels were a young team. They started one freshman, three sophomores and a junior. Only one senior player was on their roster, and she had been hampered by injury. Their inexperience just did not equip them to face an early onslaught of scoring. 

Alba-Golden settled into a more methodical game after the fast start. They stretched the lead to 25 points at the half and 31 at the end of three quarters.

Once the final quarter physical and psychological fatigue set in for Rivercrest, the Lady Panthers poured in points.>

As all number one seeds, Alba-Golden was a heavy favorite in this initial playoff match-up. They still had to show up and play with discipline, awareness and energy. They did just that.

One indicator of their focus was the absence of reaching fouls. The Lady Panthers were whistled only once in the first quarter for reaching, all while running a press designed to nick the ball away from the opponents.

Victories by large margins always come with caution. False lessons can too easily sneak into a team’s psyche. Two cautionary lessons became apparent when watching the win over Rivercrest.

Alba-Golden’s press was so effective that they seldom had to deal with a third or fourth pass by the team advancing the ball. Secondly, open looks are easy to come by when the opponent does not challenge each shot.

The girls basketball bracket narrows quickly, and margins become razor thin. Absorbing and capitalizing on these lessons from the bi-district win will be huge in continuing the playoff march. 

The Lady Panthers are a mature, steady and hard-working basketball team that has demonstrated both resilience and guts in this campaign. An exciting area-round playoff is forthcoming.

The Lady Panthers’ scheduled playoff game with Lindsay Tuesday night has been postponed indefinitely, due to weather conditions.

Update: The Lady Panthers are now scheduled to play Lindsay on Saturday, Feb. 20 at 8 p.m. in Pattonville. Tickets to be sold at the door. There will be a send-off for the team at 5:30 p.m. from the school.