HUNTSVILLE — The good news: Despite executing about as poorly as possible on the offensive end, Scott High still had a chance to win the game late.
The bad news: The district standings at the end of the season do not take into account how close games were.
That was the summation of the Lady Highlanders’ 39-35 loss to Anderson County on Friday, as Scott High picked up its first loss in District 4-3A play after leading by double digits in the first half.
The Lady Highlanders started strong, limiting the Mavericks to a single 3-point shot in the first quarter while jumping out to a 10-3 lead. The lead continued to grow early in the second quarter, with both Zoey Terry and Annalyne Woodward hitting a pair of shots.
But then things began to shift. Anderson County trimmed the deficit to six points at halftime, 21-15. And the second half was largely forgettable for Scott High.
After scoring eight points in the first half, Woodward was limited to a single free throw in the second half. As a team, Scott scored just five points in the third quarter.
In the fourth quarter, Brittany Morrow scored six of her team-high 11 points, but that wasn’t enough. Anderson County’s Kylee Alvis hit two fourth quarter 3-pointers en route to a game-high 15 points, Jaylynn Bullock went 5 of 7 from the free throw line, and the Mavericks squeaked out a 39-35 win.
Scott High shot just 30% from the field and was often hesitant to attack Anderson County’s zone defense. And while it wasn’t happening inside, it wasn’t happening outside, either; the Lady Highlanders were only 1 of 9 from 3-point range.
On the opposite end, Anderson County was able to use the high post to effectively set up back-door cuts, creating layup opportunities just often enough to come back for the win.
Zoey Terry finished with a team-high eight rebounds for Scott High. Morrow had seven. Jalin Young had three steals. Rachel Garrett had a pair of blocked shots.
SCOTT (35): Morrow 11, Woodward 9, Duncan 6, Terry 4, Lawson 3, Garrett 2.
ANDERSON CO. (39): Alvis 15, Mustard 11, Bullock 7, Flatford 4, Smith 2.
