A former Watson Chapel assistant brought her girls basketball team to the Leslie Byrd Henderson Gymnasium on Friday and used a fourth-quarter surge to remain unbeaten in conference play.
Warren defeated Watson Chapel 61-54 for the Lady Jacks’ second win against the Lady Wildcats this season.
Warren (22-2, 6-0 in 4A-8) head coach Mary Beth Grant, previously an assistant coach at Watson Chapel under Henderson, said it took a lot of effort to win in the Henderson Gym as part of the Lady Jacks’ tremendous start to this season.
“We work and play so well together,” Grant said. “I think we shared the ball well, and no one worries about who gets what and who gets this ball. They just all go play hard for each other, and I think that’s what’s brought us here.”
Watson Chapel (15-9, 2-3) led 41-40 through three quarters of a tightly fought game, but Warren senior Charlee Wardlaw put the Lady Jacks up 42-41 early in the fourth quarter. The Lady Wildcats tied the game twice before junior Bayleigh Miller hit a go-ahead three-pointer to give Warren the lead for good.
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Warren hit two more three-pointers to build its lead, eventually holding a 57-48 edge after a 7-0 run. Watson Chapel seniors Jada Briggs and Alexiah Anderson hit shots down the stretch, but the Lady Wildcats had to foul several times before finally putting Warren on the free throw line with 4.1 seconds left, too late for a comeback.
Miller finished with a game-high 25 points. Warren junior Breize Fellows added 11 points, with junior Livi McKinney scoring 10.
Briggs and senior Jayla Rodgers led Watson Chapel with 13 points apiece. Christian Lovett, another senior, scored 12 points, with fellow senior Maranda Emerson adding 11.
Watson Chapel never led in the first half but tied the game six times. The Lady Wildcats took their first lead roughly 2 minutes into the second half on an Emerson three-pointer, part of a 7-0 run.
Warren answered with a 6-0 run after a timeout before Briggs restored the Watson Chapel lead with a three. The Lady Jacks tied the game once more in the third before outscoring the Lady Wildcats 21-13 in the fourth.
Grant said the Lady Jacks responded well to Watson Chapel taking the lead.
“We knew that every possession mattered,” Grant said. “They played lights out on defense, making sure that we recovered every loose ball that second half and every rebound. I just feel like they showed full toughness in tonight’s game.”
BOYS: Watson Chapel 52, Warren 30
The Watson Chapel boys scored first and led the rest of the game for a comfortable home win Friday night.
Watson Chapel (10-13, 4-1) led 11-1 before the Lumberjacks made their first shot from the field with roughly 2:12 remaining in the first quarter. The Wildcats led 16-6 at the end of the quarter.
Watson Chapel Coach Jevon Barnes said he liked how his team started the game.
“We was communicating,” Barnes said. “We was flying around, and we was sharing the ball well, and it was leading to easy points. I wanna talk about Randolph Redix. He came off the bench today. Him and Jayden Green came off the bench and gave us a great spark today, and it helped us get this victory that we really needed.”
Warren (3-12, 2-3) fought back in the second, cutting the lead to 17-13 by the midpoint of the period. Josiah Steen, a junior, scored five points during this stretch after not scoring in the first quarter.
Redix and fellow sophomore Ja’Cari Cherry stopped the bleeding by combing for two layups and a three, kicking off a 15-2 run to close out the half and send the Wildcats into the locker room up 32-15.
Barnes said the Wildcats made some defensive adjustments, which led to the run.
“We kinda felt like we had started playing their brand of basketball,” Barnes said. “Game started getting slow. We’re really small, so we gotta speed the game up to (be) effective and make it feasible for us. Our defense led to offense and helped us get the victory.”
The Wildcats’ offense sputtered in the third quarter. Watson Chapel scored eight points in the period after scoring 16 in each of the first two, but Warren couldn’t take advantage to make any noticeable dent in the lead. Watson Chapel outscored the Lumberjacks 12-6 in the fourth quarter to close out the game.
Cherry led Watson Chapel with 13 points. Green, a sophomore, added 11, and junior Ja’Mon Parker scored 10.
Warren senior Colton Steen led the Lumberjacks with 12 points.
