Big Reds escape Huntington with 64-63 win
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HUNTINGTON -- Parkersburg's girls basketball team knows how tough it is to play on Highlander Mountaintop at Huntington High School and came ready to compete.
The Big Reds earned a 64-63 victory Wednesday night.
"This is a tough place to play basketball. I thought their student section had a great environment. It was a very, tough physical game. That is a classic MSAC basketball game. I was proud of our effort and we were tough tonight," Big Reds coach Chris Murray said.
The Big Reds took a 37-31 lead into halftime; however, the Highlanders were very strong in the second half and the score went back and forth all the way up to the final minute.
Huntington was down one with 28 seconds left. It inbounded the ball to Amayla Smith, who was fouled on a layup. After making her first free throw, the second one rolled out and forward Lala Sloan grabbed the rebound, then was fouled on her shot attempt.
Sloan made her second free throw, giving the Highlanders a 63-62 lead with 20 seconds left in regulation.
Parkersburg's Trinity Balog then took the ball to the basket and was fouled, sending her to the line, where she sank both free throws giving the Big Reds a one-point advantage with 8.3 seconds left.
Huntington was able to get the ball under the basket and had three good looks at the game-winning shot, but none made it in the hoop, giving the Big Reds the victory.
Parkersburg was led by Balog, who finished the night with 21 points. She did an excellent job of distributing the ball, crashing the boards and playing defense while point guard Lauren Flanagan scored 18 points with two big 3s in the third quarter to keep the Big Reds in the game when Huntington was gaining the momentum.
Freshman Frances Guice also contributed five points in the fourth quarter filling in for an injured player, which her coach described as "big-time points" after the game.
Amaya Smith had a huge game for the Highlanders, scoring 24 points while grabbing nine rebounds.
"We played well as a team. Our chemistry is a lot better," Smith said. "We are all talking with each other. We know our strengths and weaknesses, which is making us better as a team."
Sloan scored 19 points. Eight of them came in the third quarter, in which she was the catalyst for Huntington during its comeback to even the score.
Amara Jackson played great defense with three steals, blocking two shots while scoring 10 points and grabbing five rebounds.
"It basically came down to foul shooting," Highlanders coach Lonnie Lucas said. "They missed a few when it was not crucial. It was a typical Parkersburg-Huntington High game where we battle. It was a hard-fought game, and what is what you have when two teams are equally matched. We are getting better, and girls did what we told them."