Story and Photos by Rusty Ellis
The Clarkrange Lady Buffaloes fought off a late rally from Monterey to earn a 71-57 win over the Lady Wildcats on Friday.
The Lady Buffaloes took an early 18-7 lead heading into the second quarter, and proceeded to outscore Monterey 19-16 to take a 37-23 lead into the break.
The Lady Wildcats fought back in the third quarter, as they outscored Clarkrange 21-16 to cut that lead down to single digits heading into the final frame. The rally wasn’t enough however, as Lamar Rogers’ squad earned their sixth win of the season in 71-57 fashion.
Mattie Bush scored a game-high 29 points, while Lauren Choate scored 13 points. Addy Stowers added 12 points of her own.
Lydia Phillips scored 14 points to lead Monterey, while Lindsey Wright added 13. Adaline Clouse scored 11 points.
“That’s the best Monterey team they’ve had in many years,” Rogers said. “We played excellent at times, we had a 19-point lead and then we relaxed…we’re pleased with the win, Monterey’s solid. We’ll keep getting better.”
It’s not the first time the young Lady Buffaloes have had to weather a run from their opponent, and it likely won’t be the last. Early in the season, it’s a good thing for this team to learn how to handle adversity in Rogers’ eyes.
“This has happened to us (multiple times),” Rogers said. “We’ve had chances to face adversity and overcome it…it happened again tonight and we responded well so that’s a good sign moving forward.”
It’s early in the season, but a 6-0 start for the Lady Buffaloes is tremendous when you factor in the amount of production they lost due to graduation. Rogers says their main focus is on constant improvement and maintaining their defensive pressure throughout the season.
“The best thing is that they practice hard, and I really like their chemistry,” Rogers said. “Our defense has got to be there the whole time and it was there tonight…we’ll keep working and we’re really pleased. We just have to keep working and getting better.”
The Wildcats earned a hard-fought 55-44 win over the Clarkrange boys in the second game.
Defensively, Clarkrange got the best of Monterey in the first half, holding the Wildcats to just eight second-quarter points. This added up to a one-point lead for the Buffaloes heading into halftime.
Monterey began building some steam in the third, as they outscored the Buffaloes 19-11 to take a 40-34 advantage into the fourth quarter. There, they held off Clarkrange early and pulled away late to take home the 55-44 win.
Brandon Dillon led the way with 16 points for the Wildcats, while Silas Randolph added 11. Drew Sorkin was the only other Wildcat in double figures, as he finished with 10 points.
“I’d love to see a shot chart in the first half for how many short shots we missed,” said MHS head coach Lynus Martin. “I thought if we could just make our easy shots, we were defending well enough to win…the atmosphere here is great. I told them we just needed to win.”
The Wildcats’ defensive adjustments made the difference in the second-half, as it allowed them to take control in the third quarter and close it out in the fourth.
“They played hard,” Martin said. “If we ever learned to play smarter after we make a play, I think we’ll be a good basketball team down the road…we’re still trying to figure things out, but you can’t fault the effort.”
The Wildcats will head to Sunbright for their next contest on Tuesday, while Clarkrange will head to Crossville to take on Stone Memorial.
