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Comets heat up late, defeat Wentworth 64-53
A late 8-0 run enabled the Cottey Comets to defeat the Wentworth Military Academy Red Dragons 64-53, Wednesday night at Hinkhouse Center.
The victory improves the Comets record to 8-4.
Wentworth jumped out to a 9-3 lead, before Cottey answered with an 8-1 run to take an 11-10 lead with 9:35 remaining in the first half.
"When we went on that little run early, we were doing the little things that mattered," Cottey head coach Stephanie Beason said. "Things that we had been working on since minute one of season.
"We were blocking out, reversing the ball, and working together as a team on offense. And we were getting open shots out of it."
With 7:58 showing on the clock, Alyssa Jones hauled in a long rebound, and fired the ball upcourt to guard Latasha Griggs, who finished at the rim, handing Cottey a 15-13 edge.
Wentworth managed to briefly regain control of the game, taking a 20-16 lead with four minutes to play in the half.
However, the Comets ended the half on an 11-0 blitz, capped by a fast break layup in which guard Amalia Harris scored and was sent to the charity stripe, where she knocked down the free throw, putting Cottey on top 27-20.
"As long as we're playing team defense and working the ball on offense, that's usually when we have those nice little runs," Beason said.
In the first half, Griggs and guard Sydney Rose scored seven points apiece, while Emily Allen added five points, all from the free throw line. The three aforementioned players combined to go 11 of 14 from the free throw line.
"One thing that we did really well in the first half, was getting to the free throw line and making free throws," Beason said. "I think the only reason we were in the ballgame, let alone in the lead, is because we were hitting free throws.
"That's been a huge focus since we've been back from break, is to try and knock down as many free throws as we can. Because with the amount we attack ---- if we win free throws, we'll win games."
Second half
The second half opened with both teams exchanging buckets, as Cottey led 31-24 with 17:32 remaining in regulation. The Red Dragons shaved the lead to five at 33-28, when forward Madison Endsley bulldozed her way in for a layup with just over 16 minutes to play.
Leading 35-30 six minutes into the half, forward Linsey Denney slashed to the basket from the right wing for a lay-in, to put the Comets up 37-30. Cottey extended the lead to nine, when Griggs hit point guard Ciera Wong with an outlet pass, leading to an easy layup, at the 12:54 mark.
Midway through the second half, forward Emily Allen knocked down a pair of free throws, capping a 9-0 run, and giving Cottey a 43-30 cushion.
With 9:40 left in the half, Red Dragons forward Shakorya Brower drove to the basket, scored, and was sent to the line, where her free throw made the score 43-33. Brower's basket ended a nearly five minute scoring drought for Wentworth.
Beason said she was pleased with her team's defensive effort.
"We talked about the defensive end of things over halftime, and it was just as simple as getting under a screen, and making sure our help-side was in the paint," Beason said.
With just over nine minutes left in the second half, Griggs came up with a steal in the back court, and was fouled hard at the other end while airborne. Griggs finished off the three-point play at the free throw line, putting Cottey on top 47-33.
After a Brower bucket cut Cottey's lead to 47-35, Griggs again had an answer, swishing a 3-pointer from the left wing, stretching the Comets lead to 15 with 8:38 remaining.
"Latasha finally started playing like Latasha again," Beason said of Griggs, who finished with 14 points. "The last two games have been a little bit of a struggle with her.
"So we've been talking about what we need to do to get her back and relaxed and actually playing again. And she kind of broke lose tonight and woke up a little bit. She played really well."
The Comets failed to put the Red Dragons away, allowing a 6-0 run, reducing the Cottey lead to 50-41 with 7:07 to go.
Less than a minute later, Wong broke Cottey's brief dry spell, drilling a 15-foot jumper from the right baseline, handing the Comets a 52-41 lead.
"Ciera is one of those players that I think every coach loves to have," Beason said. "She works her rear-end off every time that she's on the court.
"She always draws the player on the defensive end who is the other team's best guard. She's maybe 5-foot-2, and she's been guarding 5-foot-7, 5-foot-8 guards that are trying to post her up. She just works non-stop, and that's usually why things end up in her favor."
With just over five minutes left to play, and Cottey leading 54-45, the Red Dragons dialed it up a notch, going on an 8-2 run, trimming the deficit to three at 56-53. However, Cottey ended the game on an 8-0 spurt, to seal the victory.
The Comets made Wentworth pay from the free throw line, as they connected on 27 of 39 attempts, compared to the Red Dragons hitting 14 of 24.
For Cottey, Denney finished with a team-high 16 points, while Allen scored 11, going 9 of 10 from the line. Rose chipped in nine.
For Wentworth, Brower collected a game-high 24 points, hitting 8 of 10 free throws.