Lady Dawgs exact payback on Wildcats
Knoxville — Bearden High School’s girls basketball team opened District 4-4A play on a winning note late last week.
In doing so, the Lady Bulldogs exacted a little revenge against new league opponent Oak Ridge, which defeated them to win the Region 2-4A Championship last season.
Bearden (7-1 overall, 1-0 in the district) gave up the first basket of the game but wasted little time seizing control of the contest on its way to capturing a 76-36 victory at Bearden.
After the Lady Wildcats’ Se’Quari Stewart scored the game’s first basket, Bearden close the opening frame on a 22-7 run. And from there the Lady Bulldogs cruise into the win column in a truly dominant performance in its sixth consecutive victory.
The Lady Bulldogs, who extended their advantage to 36-19 by halftime, picked up stellar performance from three guards in the contest.
Senior Natalya Hodge, a Missouri signee and one of the area’s top players scored 27 points for the Lady Bulldogs, including 16 before halftime. She received plenty of help from her supporting cast as Riley Hunt had 17 points and Emma Rainey finished with 12.
And that was just what Bearden coach Justin Underwood wanted to see.
“When Riley, Nat and Emma get going, they can all handle (the basketball) and all three can all shoot it,” Underwood said. “And I felt like in spots that they all looked really, really, really good tonight.”
Hunt scored all 17 of her points in the second half while Rainey had 10 points over the first 16 minutes of the contest. M.C. LeMarbre scored nine points in the game and provided an early offensive spark for the Lady Bulldogs.
The lopsided margin gave Underwood the chance to get all of his players into the game for some valuable experience in a crucial league game.
“It was nice to get everybody to touch the floor in a district game,” Underwood said. “It was a good opportunity to get them seasoned in games that matter.
“For our first district game, I’ll definitely take it and I was definitely pleased. We still have a lot to do, plenty to work on, but (we have) a lot of positive spots.”
Lady Bulldogs won easily against Knoxville West: Bearden opened the week at home by routing the Lady Rebels, 79-9, on Tuesday, Dec. 2.
