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Two familiar foes will meet during first round action of Wednesday\u2019s Mingua Beef Jerky Girls\u2019 Basketball Sweet 16 Tournament.
Eddie Mahan\u2019s North Laurel Lady Jaguars will rip-off against 11th Region champion Frederick Douglas with hopes of defeating the Lady Broncos for the second time this season.
Both teams enter Wednesday\u2019s matchup riding seven-game win streaks.
North Laurel (29-6) defeated Fredrick Douglas, 66-63, on the road back on Jan. 21.
\u201cAny time we can get experience against a team, I feel that helps me as a coach better prepare for them,\u201d Mahan said. \u201cAlso, in such a pressure situation as a state tournament, it helps my girls with a sense of familiarity that will I hope calm them down. The only down side is we had a very good game plan for them last time, and now they will have time to prepare for that.\u201d
The Lady Jaguars had four players score in double figures during the win Chloe McKnight recording a double-double, 18 points, 10 rebounds while Brooke Nichelson (16 points), Bella Sizemore (14 points), and Emily Sizemore (13 points) following.
North Laurel limited the Lady Broncos to 17-of-65 shooting from the floor, including a 7-of-21 effort from 3-point range.
\u201cWe did a great job defensively last time,\u201d Mahan said. \u201cThe first quarter we came out and made a great run. They responded in the second quarter but we were able to answer each of there runs just enough to survive. You don\u2019t see any bad teams at state and they are one of the best of the best.\u201d
Jermyra Christian led Frederick Douglas with 18 points, and nine rebounds while Kate Baker (15 points), and Noah Rhodes (15 points) followed.
Many expected North Laurel to cut down down the nets at The Corbin Arena this past week after the Lady Jaguars garnered the best RPI rating (.66806) in the 13th Region.
The Lady Broncos surprised many winning the 11th Region crown. They had the third-best RPI Rating (.62736) entering the 11th Region Tournament, and defeated Great Crossing (71-60), Madison Central (57-50), and Lexington Catholic (66-51) to win their respective regional title.
\u201cThey are a complete team,\u201d Mahan said of Frederick Douglas. \u201cThey have the ball-handling you need to handle pressure, and one of the most athletic 6\u20193 posts in the state and some of the best shooters.
\u201cThey are not the type of team that all you have to worry about one player,\u201d he added. \u201cThat have multiple kids that could get 25-plus on you.\u201d
Mahan said numerous players will have to continue to play well to get past the Lady Broncos.
\u201cBella Sizemore did tremendous in our game with them last time on the defensive end,\u201d he said. \u201cShe will have to do that again. Chloe was a dominant force in that game as well and established herself early and made them double her. That will have to duplicated in this game as well.
\u201cIn big games like this though, your leaders have to step up and Emily Sizemore and Brooke Nichelson will have to be the big time players they have been so far in tournament play,\u201d Mahan added.
Mahan said he\u2019s hoping the tough slate his team has prepared the Lady Jaguars to make a deep run.
\u201cWe play a tough schedule to prepare our team to make a good run in postseason play,\u201d he said. \u201cNo matter how tough of a schedule you play though, nothing prepares a team for the nerves of postseason play, but we have been challenged enough during our region tournament run that I think it has prepared us for this moment.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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