On Tuesday evening, the Louisa Lions girls basketball team hosted the Salem Spartans in the Region 4-D semi-finals, with an electric playoff atmosphere in the Den.
With the Lions clinging to a 1 point lead at halftime, and with the momentum seemingly in the Spartans favor, some specific adjustments were made.
“We just had to slow it down a little bit and keep our spacing,” said coach Nick Schreck. “When we started moving the ball around more we were able to make some cuts to the rim and knock down some open shots on the outside.”
Although the Lions played much better in the second half, the Spartans were still refusing to go down easy. It was merely a two possession game with a little over 5 minutes remaining in the 4th quarter when the Lions began a striking 13-2 run. The stretch was highlighted by their defense; clamping down and only allowing one FG the entire period.
“We just had to trust each other and trust what we were doing,” said Schreck. “We’ve been able to hang our hats on defense all season long and tonight was really no different.”
This final onslaught was led by senior Sylvie Jackson, who was getting it done on both the offensive and defensive end of the floor. Jackson was attracting most of the attention from the Spartans’ defense, often getting double teamed. This enabled her to distribute the ball to her teammates for some easy buckets under the rim. She finished the night with a team high 22 points and 13 rebounds.
“The senior leadership from her and (Janie Smith) has really elevated everybodys’ play,” said Schreck. “The way last season ended really stuck with them... these ladies did not want to go home tonight and they simply refused to lose.”
The final score was 48-33 in the Lions favor. The Lady Lions will now advance to the Region Championship to take on the Pulaski Cougars. This will be a rematch of last years semi-finals in which the Lions were eliminated. The game will be held this Friday at 6:30 pm at home in the Den. Admission is $7.00.
