HUNTSVILLE | It was a sluggish start offensively, but Scott High made up for it defensively, and that eventually turned in to a 50-33 win for the Lady Highlanders against Gibbs here Tuesday (Jan. 17).
Scott High moved to within one game of .500 with the region victory. But it wasn't easy, at least not early.
The Lady Highlanders missed a boatload of shots early, especially from 3-point range. Coach Jake Wright would later say that the shot attempts were good looks, but that his team is simply struggling to knock down shots.
Nevertheless, Scott finished an above-average 38% from the field. The Lady Highlanders were only six of 21 from 3-point range, however.
On a night that featured only a handful of free throws for either team, Scott was four of six from the line.
Brittany Morrow scored 13 to lead the way, going six of eight from inside the arch. She also had six steals.
There were a couple of key sequences. One was back-to-back 3-point shots by Riley Price at the end of the first half, including an NBA-range 3-pointer to beat the buzzer, giving the Lady Highlanders a double-digit lead at the intermission.
The other was a drive and layup by Morrow, followed by a steal and another layup by Morrow that helped spring Scott High to the lead in the second quarter.
The second half would see Scott lead by as much as 18 points before Gibbs slowly chipped away at the lead late in the third quarter and into the fourth quarter.
Scott High was slowed by illness. Zoey Terry did not start and played only sparingly after suffering from sickness in recent days. Another starter, Rachel Garrett, was also battling illness.
Junior Gracie Lewis started to relieve Terry, and hit two 3-pointers in the first half.
SCOTT (50): Morrow 13, R. Price 8, Woodward 7, Lewis 6, Butts 5, Jeffers 5, Young 2, Garrett 2, Z. Price 2.
GIBBS (33): Parker 13, Bates 11, Taylor 4, Whaley 3, Qualls 2.
