Greenland arrives rested, ready to go

COVE -- An extra two days off didn't seem to bother Greenland.

Instead it only made the Lady Pirates hungrier, Coach Alan Barton said, and it showed Friday in a dominant performance against Cedar Ridge.

Greenland used a suffocating defense to force 20 turnovers and a strong effort from senior forward Kiana Thompson to cruise to a 55-20 victory in the opening round of the Class 3A girls basketball state tournament at Cossatot River High School.

"We've been waiting for three days to finally get off the hill and get this thing going," Barton said. "We're not a bad ballclub, but when you're staying up there and wanting to get out there and play, you get a little antsy. The girls were ready, and it showed a little there at the beginning."

Thompson scored a game-high 17 points and the Lady Pirates (30-2) made 21 of 40 from the field while advancing to play either Bergman or McGehee in the quarterfinals at 7 p.m. Sunday. Kelsey Vaughn and Macayla Redmond added nine points each.

Six first-round games were played Tuesday before the tournament was pushed back two days because of wintry weather that moved through the state Wednesday and well into Thursday morning, making travel conditions hazardous. As a result, the remaining teams had to wait to get in their initial games.

The extended break may not have bothered Greenland, but the same couldn't be said for Cedar Ridge.

"We practiced every day in the gym and did a lot of things to stay active," Cedar Ridge Coach Casey Scribner said. "It kind of showed early on that we hadn't played in a while, but it was the same for both teams. Greenland came out and played very well. They were just better than us."

Elizabeth Henderson scored 10 points for Cedar Ridge (22-9), which made just 6 of 21 field goals and turned over the ball nine times in the first seven minutes.

Greenland led just 6-4 after a basket from Cedar Ridge guard Baylea Pectol with 5:08 to go in the first quarter, but the Lady Pirates reeled off 13 consecutive points to open up a double-digit lead and the Lady Timberwolves spent the rest of the game playing catch-up.

Early on the game was played at a tempo that decisively favored Greenland, but Cedar Ridge slowed things in the second quarter and played at a more deliberate pace. The Lady Timberwolves also did a better job of taking care of the ball.

Still, Greenland was so active and compact on defense that it made it difficult for Cedar Ridge to get off shots.

Thompson had 12 first-half points as Greenland took a 28-14 lead into halftime. The Lady Pirates turned up their defensive pressure even more in the third quarter, scoring 16 points off seven Cedar Ridge turnovers as Greenland put together 9-0 and 13-0 runs to blow open the game.

"We played great defense and made some runs," Barton said. "When you do that, good things should happen."

JESSIEVILLE 55, PARIS 37

Jessieville (22-9) used an 11-0 run midway through the third quarter to turn a seven-point deficit into a lead it didn't relinquish to beat Paris and move into the second round.

Madison Hair scored 13 points and Juliet McDonald and Kellie Lampo added 10 each for the Lady Lions, who trailed 29-22 at halftime before outscoring the Lady Eagles 33-8 in the second half. Jessieville held Paris without a point in the fourth quarter.

Lycia Peevy scored 18 points for Paris.

Sports on 03/07/2015

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