On Thursday night, they put the demons of games past behind them and rolled to a 50-40 win over the Killeen Ellison Lady Eagles at Tiger Gym.
“They were pressing too hard,” Belton coach Randy Bell said of the previous three games. “I talked to the girls since the last game, and it ain’t nothing but playing with a free mind. Just go out there and play with a free mind. I think they did that well tonight.”
The Lady Tigers (7-12, 1-3) looked early like they might remain winless in district as Alisha Jones was on fire in the first quarter, scoring eight of her game-high 14 points to help Ellison establish a nine-point lead at one point.
But then Belton found its shooting. The Lady Tigers got on a roll late in the opening quarter as Tilatha Akins nailed a 3-pointer, then after an Ellison miss Gabby Guzman scored on an putback shot and closed out the quarter by hitting two free throws to end the first quarter with the Lady Eagles up 17-15.
“Early in the first half, we weren’t stopping their transition,” Bell added. “They are so quick and athletic. I bet six of Jones’ points in that quarter were transition points.”
The next two quarters were fairly even, with Belton taking its first lead early in the third quarter but neither team leading by more than four - the margin early in the second quarter after Ellison hit its first shot.
But the Lady Tigers took a 34-31 lead into the fourth and never looked back.
Ellison’s Eloisa Seabrooks hit an early shot to make it 34-33, but Belton answered right back as Maeli Anderson hit an open 3 less than 10 seconds later.
“We went to a little bigger lineup about midway through the second quarter,” Bell said. “I think it paid off in the long run. They were getting us pretty good on the boards. I think once we got balance on them with a little bigger lineup, we kept them off balance and kept them off the boards.”
That lineup change helped Belton find its rebounding. The lineup created several mismatch opportunities, giving the Lady Tigers several easy open shots. Even when Belton missed shots, the three-post set allowed the Lady Tigers to grab the majority of the rebounds in the final quarters.
Belton finally put the game out of reach for good in the final two minutes when it found its free-throw shooting. Bailey Heitmiller scored nine of her 11 points from the foul line, including 7-of-8 shooting in the fourth. That plus several fourth-quarter steals by Angie Harris and rebounds by Akins and Guzman sealed the win.
“These kids can shoot,” Bell added. “That’s what we are known for. That’s why most teams play us man-to-man and that’s why they cover our guards. We aren’t the most athletic, but they can shoot.”
Guzman led the Lady Tigers with 12 points and Akins added nine.
“It’s a big win for the kids,” Bell said. “They’ve been playing pretty well, just not getting it done. And to get that first district win going into the Christmas break, I think that’s a big positive.”
The Lady Tigers will participate in the Bush’s Holiday Tournament at Copperas Cove Dec. 27-29 and return to district play Jan. 4 at Bryan.
mhood@temple-telegram.com
