Memorial girls slip past Claremore
BY LARRY LEWIS World Correspondent
Friday, February 22, 2013
2/22/13 at 6:15 AM
Sarah Short hit two free throws with 8.2 seconds remaining to propel No. 14 Memorial to a 43-42 victory over No. 16 Claremore Thursday night in the first round of the Class 5A Girls Regionals at Edison in an elimination game.
Trailing 42-41, Short drove hard to the basket and drew a blocking foul. After sinking both free throws. Claremore broke Memorial's full-court press and attempted a five-foot runner in the lane with two seconds left that just missed.
Memorial coach Rabu Leyva was obviously ecstatic the ending of the game, especially considering the Lady Chargers trailed for most of the game.
"We found a way to win," said a relieved Leyva.
Memorial (12-11) got down early, trailing 14-6 after the first quarter, as Claremore (12-11) hit the Lady Chargers with a barrage of three three-pointers in the quarter.
The Lady Zebras extended their lead to 23-14 by halftime, as they countered Memorial's relentless defensive pressure with five three-pointers while only scoring two two-pointers in the half.
"We're down nine points at halftime, and our best player, Faith Ihim, who averages about 20 points per game, has only two points and three fouls," said Leyva. "But our girls hung in there."
Ihim, a 5-foot-9 junior, finally got going, scoring 10 of her team-high 12 points, including seven in the fourth quarter, to lead the comeback.
Alexia Reed provided a spark in the third quarter for Memorial with six points, cutting the margin to 30-25 after three quarters. Reed finished with 11 points, all in the second half.
Memorial finally tied the game briefly at 30-30 early in the third quarter, but consecutive three-pointers by Monica Taylor and Cherokee Gott boosted Claremore to a 36-30 lead.
Ihim gave the Lady Chargers a 39-38 lead with 2:32 remaining, Ashlyn Glenn countered for Claremore with two field goals for her only four points of the game, including a bucket to break a 40-40 tie with 58 seconds remaining.
A free throw by Ihim with 49.5 seconds left narrowed the Claremore lead to 42-41, but the Lady Zebras missed free throws down the stretch that set up the game-winning free throws by Short.
Short hit four of five free throws in the final quarter to score six of her nine points in the quarter.
"I told the girls before the game to seize the moment," said Leyva. "A lot of times in an elimination game you have nerves, and if you don't seize the moment those nerves will get you. I told them to enjoy all the hard work we've done all year and find a way to win."
Edison 70, Pryor 37: Shala Dobbins, Jamika Roberts, and Cornequa Finch score 13 points apiece to lead the No. 6 ranked Lady Eagles to an easy victory over visiting Pryor.
Edison (17-7) got out to a 20-4 lead early in the second quarter as the game was never close.
Kelsie Kerns led Pryor with 21 points.
Memorial 43, Claremore 42
| Claremore |
14 |
9 |
7 |
12 |
- |
42 |
| Memorial |
6 |
8 |
11 |
18 |
- |
43 |
Claremore: Taylor 12, Gott 11, Cox 9, Glenn 4, Reynolds 3, McGuire 2, Steckline 1.
Memorial: Ihim 12, A. Reed 11, Short 9, Patterson 8, Battiest 3.
Edison 70, Pryor 37
| Pryor |
4 |
12 |
11 |
10 |
- |
37 |
| Edison |
17 |
14 |
22 |
17 |
- |
70 |
Pryor: Kerns 21, Chavoya 7, Wilsie 4, Green 3, Zumstein 2.
Edison: Dobbins 13, Roberts 13, Finch 13, Mays 10, K. Landrum 9, Green 7, R. Landrum 2, Atwell 2, Sanders 1.
Class 5A Girls Regionals
Memorial 43, Claremore 42
Edison 70, Pryor 37
Original Print Headline: Memorial slips past Claremore
