Tigers platoon Clarksville

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CLARKSVILLE

Coach Kevin Hensley hoped his Crothersville girls basketball team could get off to a quick start on Saturday afternoon at Clarksville, so he could platoon his top-10 players in the first half.

His plan worked, as the Tigers jumped on top 11-0 after 6½ minutes, held a 17-2 lead at the end of the first quarter, and coasted to a 62-38 win.

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“I’m just trying to get all the girls to be more offensive, and try to attack the basket,” Hensley said. “I platooned there for a couple quarters just to get all the girls in to get them all thinking offensive-minded. I want them to know that I need all of them to be a threat out there instead of just standing back and rebounding.”

The Tigers mixed their starting line-up with their bench in the first half comfortably.

At the beginning of the season, Tigers topped the Generals 47-28 in the Henryville Tip-off Tournament.

Hensley got 12 girls into the game and 11 of them scored.

Lacey Hall had the hot hand in the first quarter scoring four baskets, while Nikki Hickman and Allison Davidson added two field goals each.

Alexis Adair got hot in the second period with seven points, with a 3-pointer put the Tigers on top 30-8 at 2:07 on the period.

At halftime, the Tigers led 33-14.

Katrina Christian had three goals in the third quarter, as the Tigers outscored the General 15-12 to take a 48-26 lead into the final eight minutes of play.

The Tigers shot 22-for-52 from the floor to the Generals’ 11-for-48.

Hensley said he felt like the Tigers’ defense was solid.

“I liked the way we got after it on defense,” he said. “Defense is what’s either going to break us or makes us in the sectional. I think that’s what hurt us in those games we were down. We didn’t play as good a defense as we had been.”

Hall topped the Tigers with 14 points, Adair finished with 11 and Christian added 10.

Bailey Sharp was high scorer for the Generals (4-20) with 17 points.

Abby Jewell, who missed the first 11 games of the season, and six more games recently because of knee problems, saw extensive playing time in the last three periods and finished with 7-for-10 shooting at the free throw line and she had five rebounds.

The Tigers won two games this week and will take a record of 15-10 into the West Washington Sectional where they will play the winner of Springs Valley-West Washington on Friday.

“We’re getting back to where we were, and I feel we’re a lot stronger than what we were during that little four-game slump that we had,” Hensley said. “I’m excited about the sectional coming up, and the girls are too. Abby is one of those girls that she can play any position. She can play point, or center, of which position I even ask. She doesn’t hesitate, she just does it.”

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