The McLennan basketball teams got a split with their counterparts from Hill this afternoon at The Highlands.
The Highlassies and Lady Rebels tipped off first with McLennan coming away with the 73-64 victory.
Velma Mitchell drained a 3-pointer off the assist from JonNá McDonald to begin the McLennan scoring. Hill got on the board with a layup by Miranda Stephens. The two teams traded basket with the Highlassies leading 7-5 with seven minutes to go in the first quarter. Hill went on a 5-0 run in less than a minute to take the 10-7 lead and extended its lead to four midway through the quarter, 12-8. McLennan rallied to tie the game at 12 but the Lady Rebels pulled away again, leading by four, 18-14 with 1:12 to go in the quarter. A drive in the lane by Mitchell and a pair of Nowlin free throws tied the game at 18 after the first quarter.
Another Mitchell 3-pointer and a drive by Nowlin gave the Highlassies a 5-0 run to start the second, 23-18. Hill rattled off a 12-2 run to build a five-point lead, 30-25, with 4:32 to play in the quarter. The Lady Rebels led 32-27 with 3:29 to go. McLennan didn’t give in and used shots in the lane from Nadia Hayes, Mitchell and Anndrea Lloyd to pull within one. Hill led 35-33 at the half.
The game was tied at 43 midway through the third. Alexa Hoy hit a 3-pointer to put Hill back up by three, 46-43. McLennan responded with a 15-2 run capped off by a buzzer-beating 3-pointer by Colandria Haynes to take the double-digit lead into the fourth, 58-48.
Hill opened the fourth quarter on a 4-0 run to trim the Highlassies’ lead to six but that would be as close as they would get. McLennan pulled away once again and led by as many as 13 in the final period to secure the victory.
Velma Mitchell shot lights out, scoring 28 points to lead the Highlassies. Anndrea Lloyd and KeeKee Nowlin scored 14 and 11, respectively.
In men’s action, the Highlanders fell to the Rebels 84-71.
The Highlanders came out flat and appeared to be a little off kilter from the start. Hill built an early four-point lead at 12-8. A Daniel Pinho Severo 3-pointer sparked a 6-2 McLennan run to tie the game at 14. The Rebels began to pull away from there and led by 12, 29-17, with just over seven minutes to play in the first half. The Highlanders didn’t back down. Javen Hedgeman and Xaiver Armstead drained a pair of free throws each, and Hedgeman added a layup to cut the Hill lead in half, 29-23, with five minutes to go. The Rebels would extend the lead to nine with two minutes to play in the half and led by eight at the break, 37-29.
Hill kept McLennan at arm’s length in the second half. The Rebels extended the lead to 16 with 10:59 remaining in the game. The Highlanders rallied several times late in the to cut the Hill lead to seven but couldn’t overcome the deficit.
Jashawn Talton led the Highlanders with 16 points. Javen Hedgeman and Jordan Skipper-Brown chipped in 14 and 12, respectively. Marquez Cooper scored 11 and Xaiver Armstead rounded out the scorers in double figures with 10.
McLennan begins the second round of conference play Wednesday, traveling to Ranger. Women’s action gets underway at 5 p.m., followed by the men’s game at 7 p.m.
Hill: Tamia Cunigan 1 1-2 3; Lexi Leveston 0 0-0 0; Da’Meka Shed 2 1-2 6; Kelsey Crouse 4 3-4 14; Lauren Riles 1 0-0 2; Miranda Stephens 2 0-2 5; Alexa Hoy 8 2-4 26; Arhianna Sims-Jackson 3 2-4 8; Jade Compton 0 0-0 0; Totals: 21 11-20 64.
McLennan: Patrickia Daily 0 0-0 0; Colandria Haynes 2 2-2 8; JonNá McDonald 0 2-2 2; Shekenia Green 1 0-0 2; Velma Mitchell 10 3-5 28; KeeKee Nowlin 3 4-6 11; Jaylonn Walker 1 1-2 3; Nadia Hayes 2 1-2 5; Chiqueria Cook 0 0-0 0; Anndrea Lloyd 5 4-4 14; Totals: 24 17-23 73.
3-pointers: Hill 11 (Hoy 6, Crouse 3, Stephens 1, Leveston 1); McLennan 8 (Mitchell 5, Haynes 2, Nowlin 1); Total fouls: Hill 17, McLennan 17; Fouled out: Crouse (Hill), Haynes (McLennan); Halftime score: Hill 35, McLennan 33; Record: McLennan 12-9 (5-2).
Hill: Jamir Cheeks 4 0-0 2; Xaiver Johnson 3 0-0 7; Quinton Bringham 4 0-0 9; Jordan Powell 0 0-0 0; Shamar Bailey 7 6-6 22; Andre Washington 5 2-7 12; Xaviar Gaona 1 0-0 2; Mike Medlin 7 8-8 25; Vilgot Larrson 1 3-5 5; Totals: 29 19-26 84.
McLennan: Aaron Gregg 0 0-0 0; Javen Hedgeman 5 4-4 14; Marquez Cooper 5 0-0 11; Xaiver Armstead 3 2-2 10; Antoine Banks 0 0-0 0; Jashawn Talton 5 5-7 16; Dayante McClellan 2 1-2 4; Daniel Pinho Severo 1 1-2 4; Jordan Skipper-Brown 5 2-3 12; Sasa Vuksanvic 0 0-0 0; Malachi Barron 0 0-0 0; Totals: 26 14-19 71.
3-pointers: Hill 7 (Medlin 3, Bailey 2, Bringham 1, Johnson 1); McLennan 5 (Armstead 2, Cooper 1, Talton 1, Pinho Severo 1); Total fouls: Hill19, McLennan 22; Halftime score: Hill 37, McLennan 29; Record: McLennan 21-3 (4-2).
