Lady Dragons at top of District with win over Gibbs
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Lanee Carmichael draws a fould on her way to the basket. The tenacious Lady Dragons beat Gibbs 76-46 and improved to 4-0 in District play. - Tony Cox
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Clinton freshman, Jailee Rodd, applies pressure in the back court during the Lady Dragons Saturday outing against the Gibbs Lady Eagles. - Tony Cox
Clinton High School girls basketball coach Alicia Daugherty admitted that her team didn’t have its best game Saturday night.
But she wasn’t about to give back a District 4-AAA victory road victory.
“We were complacent at times and they beat us on the boards a little in the first half,” Daugherty said after the Lady Dragons defeated Gibbs, 76-46, at the Jerry H. Sharp Gymnasium in Corryton.
The league game, which was originally scheduled for Friday night but had to be rescheduled due to potential inclement weather that forced the closure of Knox County Schools in an announcement made late Thursday afternoon.
KCS policy states that if schools are closed then extra-curricular activities must be canceled in most cases.
The game was close early as the Lady Dragons had the upper hand at the end of the first quarter. Clinton was ahead of the host Lady Eagles, 17-14, at the end of the opening frame.
The Lady Dragons, however, wasted little time seizing control of the contest in the second stanza. Clinton, which kept its perfect league record intact with the victory, turned up the defensive pressure and gradually began to win the rebounding battle. The Lady Dragons (15-4 overall, 4-0 in District 4-AAA) also got hot with their long-range shooting game.
Clinton, which knocked down 10 shots from beyond the 3-point arc in the contest, erupted in the second frame and outscored Gibbs (9-8, 1-3), 23-9, to open a 42-23 advantage by halftime.
The Lady Dragons made seven 3-point shots in the first half, including four in the second quarter and that was a key ingredient in a potent and balanced offensive attack.
“Our scoring was balanced and to get a big district win on the road, we’ll take it,” Daugherty said. “We were able to get some baskets in transition.”
Josie Moody led the way for the Lady Dragons with 19 points. Lanee Carmichael added 14. Sydney Herrell had 12 as she knocked down four 3-pointers. Addi Gamble scored 10. Bailey Burroughs chipped in with nine. Allie York had eight and Tapanga Easterday finished with four.
Raley Qualls led the Lady Eagles with 19 points and Jadyn Parker added 10.
The Lady Dragons opened the week with a 59-42 league win over Scott at home on Tuesday, Jan. 9.