By JIM MISUNAS
Great Bend’s girls were one score away from finishing off a rally from a 13-point deficit against Dodge City High School.
But Dodge City’s Ezinne Okoro stopped the comeback by forcing a tie ball with the Red Demons ahead 37-36. Kate Warren had given the Panthers the basketball with a steal.
The Panthers fouled Dodge City’s best player Tia Bradshaw and she converted four free throws and Chidera Okoro made two free throws in the final minute for a 43-37 victory Friday.
A victory would’ve kept Great Bend (10-8, 5-1 WAC) in the driver’s seat for a share of the league title heading to Liberal (14-3, 4-1). Great Bend beat Dodge City 52-37 in their first meeting.
“It’s disappointing,” said Great Bend coach Carrie Minton. “We were not strong with the basketball at the end. The girls fought their hearts out. We were awfully proud of their effort. I knew our defense would us back in the ballgame.”
Dodge City missed a trio of one-and-one free throws after leading 37-25. The Panthers rallied with intense defense and an driving offense that produced 12 free throws in the fourth quarter.
Carly Dreiling scored eight points and Carley Brack scored six points in the fourth quarter to rally the Panthers, who smartly employed effective full-court pressure defense to swing the momentum. Brack scored 17 points and Dreiling added 16 points.
“We wanted to keep the basketball out of Bradshaw’s hands and force their other players to handle the ball,” Minton said. “We played tremendous defense against a very quick and athletic basketball team.”
Bradshaw scored 18 points off 5 of 15 shooting. Ezinne Okoro added eight points. The Red Demons converted 11 of 15 free throws.
The Panthers shot 24 percent on 9 of 38 field goals. They stayed within range with 15 of 21 free throws.
“At times, we had a hard time getting shots to drop,” Minton said. “But I was awfully proud the way the girls fought back. We just didn’t enough to win the ballgame.”
Dodge City (6-12, 2-4 WAC) built an early 19-6 lead. The Panthers came out flat with standout starter Camryn Dunekack, sidelined with a knee injury.
Dodge City led 21-14 at halftime, keyed by a 13-0 scoring run. The Panthers had no defensive answer for Bradshaw, who scored 11 first-half points. Bradshaw scored nine points in the 13-0 run.
The Red Demons scored four points off steals and added four more off second-chance points. The Panthers converted 4 of 20 field goals for 20 percent shooting.
DC 13 8 11 11 – 43
GB 6 8 9 14 – 37
DODGE CITY—Tia Bradshaw 5-15 7-9 18; Maple 0-4 0-1 0; Nelson 0-4 2-2 2; Chidera Okoro 2-4 2-2 6; Ezinne Okoro 4-5 0-0 8, Armstrong 2-3 0-0 5; Sowers 2-3 0-0 4; Totals 15-38 11-14 43.
GREAT BEND—Carley Brack 4-19 7-8 17; Carly Dreiling 3-9 8-11 16; Brooklyn Burkhart 0-2 0-0 0; Kate Warren 1-4 0-0 2; Keely Ireland 1-3 0-2 2; Annie Mills 0-1 0-0 0; Totals 9-38 15-21 37.
3-point goals—DC 2-9 (Bradshaw 1-4, Armstrong 1-2, Nelson 0-1, Maple 0-2); GB 3-14 (Brack 2-8, Dreiling 1-4, Ireland 0-2). TO—DC 10, GB 13.
