Jason Peake
Ignited by an aggressive full-court press, the Webb City girls basketball team claimed a 62-31 victory over Harrisonville on Friday night at the Mercy Lady Cardinal Classic inside the Cardinal Dome.
Webb City extended its winning streak to three with a solid defensive effort, as scored 31 points off 46 Harrisonville turnovers.
Throughout the contest, Webb City's pressure defense created easy offensive opportunities.
"Last night our defense did a good job of creating offense for us and I thought we did a pretty good of that again tonight," Webb City coach Lance Robbins said. "We were a little sloppy at times, but I'm pleased with our effort."
Webb City junior Jaydee Duda scored 16 points and grabbed eight steals to lead three players in double figures.
Sophomore forward Kenzie Robbins recorded a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds for the hosts, while senior Keira Jackson contributed 14 points, eight rebounds and four steals. Junior point guard Sierra Kimbrough chipped in nine points, three assists and three stealsfor the Cardinals.
"On any given night, we have at least three or four kids who can have a big night for us," Coach Robbins said of his team's balanced attack. "Keira Jackson has been solid the last two nights for us."
Webb City (5-4) connected on 19-of-61 field goal attempts and 16-of-23 free throws. The Cardinals turned it over 17 times, but had 26 steals.
Harrisonville was led by Karsen Graves' nine points. The Wildcats hit 11-of-35 field goal attempts and 7-of-13 foul shots.
Kenzie Robbins and Duda both converted steals into layups late in the first quarter and the Cardinals led 24-12 at the end of the first period.
The Cardinals led 34-18 at the break and the hosts then put the game way by scoring the first 12 points of the third quarter. Webb City's cushion reached 34 points with 7:27 remaining in the game.
In Friday's other game, Bentonville rolled past Battle 76-28.
Bentonville led 18-5 by the end of the first quarter and 42-12 at the break.
Following today's noon game between Battle and Harrisonville, the Cardinals will meet Bentonville at 1:30 in the tourney's championship game, as both squads are now 2-0 at the round-robin event.
"We look forward to the opportunity to play them," Robbins said. "They got us earlier this season in their tournament. We know we'll have to play well and it's a going to be a good challenge for us."
Joplin Globe 12/28/2019 (Used by permission)