HOT SPRINGS — Delayed a day by the heavy snows, the annual Spa City Shootout got under[more] way on Friday, Dec. 28, with four games including the Bryant Lady Hornets’ battle against the Hot Springs Lady Trojans.
After falling behind 7-2, the Lady Hornets trailed 10-6 after a quarter and 18-14 at the half. It was 31-23 going into the third quarter.
“We would fight back and it would be a possession game for a while then we’d give up some offensive rebounds,” said Lady Hornets head coach Brad Matthews. “They’re very aggressive. They’re a very good team. We tried to zone them just to keep them out of the lane because they’re so quick and athletic and aggressive. But it’s tougher to rebound out of a zone than it is out of a man and that hurt us. We’d go man and they’d beat us off the dribble. We ended up having to help and gave up some good looks or put them at the line.
“Credit Hot Springs,” he added. “I thought they played well. I didn’t think we played bad. We didn’t have a very fluid offensive game. We still had chances to win but we just couldn’t keep them off the boards enough to sustain any kind of momentum.
“They were all 5-8, 5-9 so their length and their athleticism caused us problems,” the coach said. “We had quite a few turnovers and they really hurt us on the boards. That was probably the difference in the game, their offensive rebounding.”
Courtney Davidson had 13 points to lead Bryant. Logan Davis had 9 and Dezerea Duckworth 6.
Bryant is set to take on Mount St. Mary Academy this morning at 10.
