HAMMOND — The Lake Arthur girls basketball team’s quest for a Class 2A title came to an abrupt end when Madison Prep beat the Tigers 61-34 in a semifinal game of the Top 28 state tournament Wednesday at the University Center.
The Tigers (22-6), who never led, had no answer for the Chargers’ (24-5) press and struggled shooting the ball.
“I’m proud of my girls,” said Lake Arthur head coach Vickie Sketoe. “I think a few of them came out nervous because they have never been in this situation. They never quit fighting, we just couldn’t find our way back.”
MPA outscored Lake Arthur 17-4 in the first quarter, using its full-court pressure defense to force eight turnovers and limit the Tigers to 16.7 percent from the field.
The Chargers forced 26 turnovers and limited Lake Arthur to 12 of 53 from the field while shooting just under 44 percent.
“We just didn’t have one of our better games today,” Sketoe said. “Give credit to Madison Prep, they did a good job on offense. We just couldn’t seem to find the rim and it hurt us early.”
Chargers senior guard and Western Kentucky signee Sherry Porter led MPA with a game-high 19 points in addition to seven rebounds and five steals.
Sophomore guard Kennedi Green and junior forward Dezmanique Gaines followed, shooting a combined 72.2 percent from the field for 31 points.
“We knew who we had to stop, and we knew they were going to be pressuring us,” Sketoe said. “In the first half we were (5-for-22). You’re not going to beat a lot of people shooting like that. We couldn’t get loose.”
The Tigers’ leading scorer, senior forward Sarah Guidry, was held to nine points, while junior guard Jamara Levy and junior center Shay Carter added eight points each.
“I knew they relied on (Levy) to handle the ball and to lead them and (Guidry) to shoot the outside shot,” said MPA head coach Dwayne Hayes. “Going in the game plan was to make (Levy) work as hard as she could work, and use it to our advantage to shut down (Guidry) as much as possible.”
Sketoe heaped praise on her team and the Lake Arthur faithful who made the trip.
“The community has just been awesome in supporting these girls,” Sketoe said. “At the beginning of the year, I don’t think anybody had the confidence in these girls that we were going to be where we’re at.
“I wish we were in the finals. But we set our sights on it, and this is where we’re at.”
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