HS Girls Basketball: Lady Highlanders Shine in Home-court Win Over the Lady War Eagles

THE WOODLANDS, TX -- The Woodlands Lady Highlanders bested the visiting Oak Ridge Lady War Eagles in a 59-41 contest while the district settles into its early standings shuffle.

Out-of-district play and tough tournaments had sharpened both teams for 13-6A. With Oak Ridge holding second and The Woodlands holding onto fourth through the opening stages of district play, a win tonight would steadily boost either team toward the top of the standings.

In an exclusive interview with The Woodlands Online Sports Lady Highlander Head Coach Ashley Davis emphasized the importance of performing against a quality opponent.

“This game was very important,” said Davis. “We needed it more to prove to ourselves that we’re trying to compete. We want to be ready for every game.”

Both teams' strategies and preparation prepared them for an intense battle. The energy was high, and the offenses ignited a reliable shooting performance to start the first quarter.

Starting the game with a barrage of threes were the Lady Highlanders. Their rapid approach of quick passes to open shooters left the Oak Ridge defenders away from their assignments. Space and time for the lethal Woodlands shooters were enough to get the team’s offense going with three three-pointers in the opening eight minutes.

Aiding the Lady Highlanders was their early strength of rebounding on offense. Lengthy arms inside either came down with boards or swatted the ball to teammates for second-chance opportunities.

“That was the one element that we were missing,” said Davis on offensive rebounding. “I told them, we have the skill, but we have to make sure we have the hustle to go with it. When you put that hustle with the skill that we have, good things happen.”

In response, Oak Ridge relied on drives to the hoop to set up layups in easier scoring positions. Despite the prying arms of Lady Highlander defenders, the Lady War Eagles successfully bulldozed their way into the paint to the tune of six straight points.

With both offenses going strong, the handful of stops forced by the defense were valuable in protecting what few leads were had in the first.

Their early scoring and a 7-0 run to reclaim their lead, left The Woodlands with a 15-11 lead at the end of one. It was a fragile lead of just two possessions but stops to begin the second quarter could have provided a major swing in The Woodlands’ momentum.

Four straight turnovers from Oak Ridge surrendered each of the team’s possessions to start the second, giving the Lady Highlanders their chance to create separation before the half.

“One thing we do well is transition offense, but we can only do that if we play good defense,” explained Davis. “Buying into the defensive side has allowed us to get out and run. And because we have girls that can finish at the rim, we get great opportunities.”

The still rampaging Woodlands offense took full advantage of the situation by pouring points onto their slim lead. The four-point margin swelled to eleven behind a second 7-0 run from the Lady Highlanders against minimal resistance from Oak Ridge.

Oak Ridge attempted to limit the flow of points from The Woodlands by stepping their defense up to halfcourt and applying pressure to the Lady Highlander passing lanes. The Woodlands’ shooters were forced away from their spots, but skip passes resumed the job put on by the offense.

The complete domination from The Woodlands began to carry over to the team’s effort on defense. Oak Ridge started to find it increasingly difficult to work the ball inside the arch by pass or dribble. More turnovers and frustration from coaches and players only added to the lopsided feel of the second quarter.

A late 4-0 run did show signs of life from the Lady War Eagles, but their 18-30 deficit would have to be overcome by a combination of scoring runs and revived defense.

“I told them at halftime that it's zero to zero, we have to win the next quarter,” said Davis. “We’re trying to win every single possession and play hard.”

Chances to adjust during the break gave the Lady War Eagles a strong opportunity to build on the foundation they built near the end of the first half.

Oak Ridge’s run that ended the first half parlayed into a 5-0 run that brought The Woodlands’ lead down to single digits for the first time since the start of the second quarter. Revamped defense in the open floor led to transition points for the Lady War Eagles while halting the Lady Highlanders ' scoring before it could start.

But even with their lead lightly threatened, the Lady Highlander made the necessary adjustments to break through the Oak Ridge wall and resume their scoring ways.

Another flurry of threes on consecutive possessions pushed the Lady Highlander cushion back to double digits.

“They handled their business and kept their composure,” said Davis praising her players. “We knew Oak Ridge was not going to let up and keep fighting, so we had to make sure that we weathered the storm.”

The remainder of the third quarter was spent trading points on possessions that lasted seconds apiece. The wave of scoring and Highlander fans brought new energy into the mostly defensive quarter.

Both changes benefitted The Woodlands in their third-quarter surge that saw the team lead by as many as 19. Oak Ridge did get the final bucket, but the 48-21 Lady Highlander advantage appeared enough to carry the team to a comfortable home win.

The same back-and-forth scoring that punctuated the end of the third quarter was driven further home to kickstart the final eight minutes of play.

Oak Ridge’s points were significant in keeping the team’s offensive momentum going but without stops, their hopes of a comeback were sunk before any ground could be made.

Stops were so infrequent that the Lady Highlanders stretched their already commanding lead to 20 with four minutes remaining. The large margin and tired players left both teams contempt to play out the stretch without timeouts or lengthy stoppages.

Only whistles from the officials stopped play down the stretch on the way to a dominant 59-41 win for the Lady Highlanders.

The win is crucial in keeping the Lady Highlanders in the tight early district standings, but it also allows the team a chance to finish with positive momentum before hitting the winter break.

“We have to be consistent. We’ve had games where we played great and others where we look like we’ve never practiced,” said Davis. “The importance of this win is to build off of the energy and carry it into our next games.”

The next chance to keep up the momentum for the Lady Highlanders will come on Tuesday night against the Cleveland Lady Indians while Oak Ridge prepares for an extended break before facing Eisenhower.

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