The North Greene girls improved to 7-0 after their 55-38 win over the visiting Cherokee Lady Chiefs on Tuesday night.
After a great Thanksgiving week with a 3-0 record at Grainger High School, the Lady Huskies picked up right where they left off and secured another win on their home floor. In their Thanksgiving tournament last week, they happened to meet up with Cherokee on the same day one week prior and took home a decisive 58-25 victory. They used their tough defense to their advantage once again to earn Tuesday night’s win.
Freshman Josie Graham led North Greene in scoring with 14 points, eight of those coming in the fourth quarter. Kaydence Marshall joined her in double figures with 11 and scored all hers in the second quarter during a huge sequence.
“It was good to see Josie up here leading us. She’s just a scrappy player and a great athlete. She’s coming along for us and having some really good games. Just adding to our depth,” Lady Huskies Head Coach James Buchanan said.
The Lady Huskies had a really hard time scoring the ball from outside the paint and it was evident in the first quarter. Both teams sat tied 6-6 after the first, but an explosion of offense in the second quarter helped them break away.
“Offensively I thought we couldn’t get one to fall. Layups, open threes, even some free throws in the first half. In the second quarter we were 3-for-8. Too many freebies that we’re giving up. We’ve got point-blank layups we’re missing. Just didn’t shoot it well,” Buchanan mentioned.
Tied 8-8, Marshall drained a three-point shot. Loren Blevins stole the inbounds pass and laid the ball up under the basket for a quick two. Blevins forced another turnover on the next inbounds pass, but no points would come out of it. Mercy Buchanan’s court vision led to a Josie Graham layup moments later.
A momentum shifting stretch came halfway through the quarter when the Lady Huskies scored 11 points before allowing Cherokee to even cross half court. Kaydence Marshall’s steal and layup on an inbounds pass led to the first two points. Another steal led to a trip to the free throw line for Loren Blevins. She made the first, but missed the second. An offensive rebound by the Lady Huskies led to another three from Marshall. Another steal in the front court led to a layup from Ella Head that had a foul tacked on at the end. She missed the free throw, but an offensive rebound by Hannah Miller led to yet another three-point bomb from Kaydence Marshall.
“That’s what I’m proud of with this team. Usually when you miss a free throw or blow a layup, you’re all bummed out. But here we are making the best out of a bad situation. Miss a free throw, get the offensive rebound, kick it out, and hit a three. That’s the type of team that you want to coach. They keep playing hard no matter what the circumstances are. That was a huge sequence for us,” Buchanan expressed.
The Lady Huskies broke out to a 28-11 lead going into the half. They continued adding on with layups from Head and Miller to start the third. Addie Lawson was kept quiet in the first half and held to only 3 points, but scored 10 in the third including 8-straight to start the frame for Cherokee.
“We had a hard time guarding what I felt like was a top-notch player. Out of their 38 points she had 19,” Coach Buchanan stated. “We just had a hard time guarding her and I don’t think the help was there.”
Graham and Buchanan added free throws before Cadie McDevitt stepped off the bench and nailed a three ball. The three-point bombs kept falling with Blevins and Head firing away for a pair to end the quarter with North Greene ahead 45-22.
Josie Graham scored eight points in the fourth quarter to help ensure North Greene came away with a victory.
The Lady Huskies defended the Den and picked up a 55-38 victory in the end.
Graham led them in scoring with 14 points and Marshall had 11. Addie Lawson led all scorers with 19 points for Cherokee.
North Greene stays put and welcomes in Chuckey-Doak for a county rivalry matchup on Thursday night.
