BY JIM MISUNAS
GARDEN CITY – Great Bend senior standouts Sadie Spray and Emilee Hall performed like veteran Western Athletic road warriors in the Panthers’ hard-fought 4434 basketball victory over Garden City Friday.
Spray scored 22 points with multiple steals and sidekick Hall added 13 points as they combined for 35 points for Great Bend (6-2, 1-0).
“Winning is hard,” said Great Bend coach Cindy Beck. “We battled hard. Sadie and Emilee stayed consistent and played with confidence. We’ll take that win tonight.”
The Panthers fueled a transition offense with 30 Garden City turnovers, keyed by a hot start. Spray and Hall each scored four points and Paige Thexton added a basket for a quick 10-2 lead off six Buffalo turnovers.
Great Bend built leads of eight points in the first quarter, seven in the second period, 10 in the third period and 12 points (42-28) when Spray converted a fast-break layup with 3:30 left in the ballgame.
Spray, Makenzie Premer and Jillian Reimer spark a full-court pressure scheme that constantly frustrated the Buffaloes. The Panthers’ well executed defense never let the Buffaloes get comfortable.
“Our goal is to pressure and get steals,” Spray said. “We want to slow them down.”
Garden City (5-3, 0-1 WAC) has averaged 29 points during a 3-game losing streak, scoring 22 points against Lamar, Colo. 30 versus Hooker, Okla. and 34 against the Panthers.
Great Bend made 19 of 51 field goals, and attempted 16 more than field goals than the Buffaloes. Garden City’s K.J. Pinchon performed brilliantly with 17 points and four 3-pointers. Her Buffalo teammates combined to make 6 of 24 field goals (25%).
The Panthers’ only letdown came in the final 31/2 minutes when they committed five turnovers in the game’s final six possessions with no plan of attacking the basket. Spray, of course, broke that streak with a driving basket.
“We didn’t look to score,” Beck said. “Luckily, we had a lead.”
Great Bend 15 9 11 9 – 44
Garden City 11 8 6 9 – 34
GREAT BEND (6-2, 1-0)—Spray 9-15 2-4 22, Hall 6-15 1-2 13, Thexton 2-10 0-0 4, McCauley 1-4 0-0 2, Premer 1-5 0-0 2, Ringo 0 1-2 1, Reimer 0-2 0-0 0, Totals 19-51 4-8 44.
GARDEN CITY (5-3, 0-1)—Pinchon 5-11 3-6 17, Korf 2-5 0-0 6, Brown 1-5 0-0 3, Carr 2-4 0-0 4, Villegas 0-1 1-2 1, Martinez 0-3 1-2 1, McDonald 0-1 0-0 0, Meng 0-1 0-0 0, Totals 11-35 5-10 34.
3-pointers—GB 2-9 (Spray 2-6, McCauley 0-3: GC 7-16 (Pinchon 4-6, Korf 2-4, Brown 1-3, Villegas 0-3).
