Published: 12:39 AM, Fri Feb 19, 2010
E.E. Smith girls keep rolling
After tearing through the Mid-South regular season without a single loss, the E.E. Smith girls can't use revenge as a motivator in the conference tournament.
With every opponent gunning to knock off the top-seeded Golden Bulls, coach Dee Hardy and her staff have worked hard to develop a killer instinct before the state playoffs begin. And the girls put that on display Thursday with 64-37 semifinals drubbing of No. 4 Jack Britt inside Smith's gym.
"We're trying to keep the girls motivated and keep our attitude in place," said Hardy, whose team improved to 20-1 overall with the win. "It's hard when you play some teams so many times, but we want the girls ready to go hard right out of the gate."
The Buccaneers (13-12) did their best to keep up with the Golden Bulls' high-powered offense in the first quarter as Smith rushed out to a 21-14 lead. Then they ran into the defensive intensity Hardy has been stressing to her girls all week long.
Britt combined for only 11 points over the next two quarters, allowing the Golden Bulls to build a commanding 50-25 lead heading into the final frame. Led by Tia Moore's game-high 12 points, Smith finished the night with three players in double figures.
"We're not really stressing too much on offense since that usually tends to flow with the way we play," said Moore, who scored all of her points before halftime.
The big lead allowed Hardy to empty her bench to start the fourth. The Bucs managed a 10-2 run against the backups before Jovanah Graham (11 points) and Avae' Hardy (10 points) returned to close the game and set up another matchup with No. 2 Seventy-First at 7:30 p.m. today inside Smith's gym.
The Golden Bulls swept all three contests between the two teams this season, but both conference games were close calls. Smith is the only team the Falcons (21-3) haven't been able to solve yet this season.
Bucs coach Nattlie McArthur got a scare right at the final buzzer when the team's leading scorer, Caitlin Sandy (13.4 points per game), landed awkwardly and rolled her ankle. She had to be helped to the locker room, but McArthur expected her, and the team, to be ready when the playoffs begin next week."
Staff writer Paul Shugar can be reached at shugarp@fayobserver.com or 486-3513.