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The Parry McCluer High School girls basketball team always stakes its reputation on high-pressure defense. But if last Tuesday’s 55-22 win over Eastern Montgomery is any indication, the Fighting Blues are now firing on all offensive cylinders as well.
PM poured in 25 points in the first quarter and 41 across the first half against the Mustangs, cruising to the 33-point win in Buena Vista.
The Blues secured a 53-16 road victory over Highland County on Thursday to move to 6-0 in the Pioneer District. PM then ran its overall winning streak to nine games and improved to 13-3 overall with a 57-33 win over Gretna at the Rock the Ribbon Roundball Shootout in Lexington on Saturday. (See separate story) Last Tuesday, Victoria Hamilton posted 17 points and eight rebounds to pace the Blues. Natalie Mohler tallied 14 points, sinking four 3-pointers, while Payton Emore contributed nine points, seven rebounds and eight assists.
Macie Akers paced the Mustangs with seven points and seven rebounds, and Ajia McHone recorded six points and four boards. EastMont fell to Craig County later in the week, dropping to 2-14 overall and 1-4 in the district.
Any number of statistics would show how well the Blues’ offense performed against the Mustangs, especially in the first half. Perhaps the most telling was that all five starters recorded an assist within the opening three minutes of the game.
“That’s impressive,” PM head coach Adam Gilbert said. “That’s sharing the basketball and hitting the open person – and then obviously having the ability to hit the open shot, too.”
Though the Blues defeated EM 41-27 in the first meeting in Elliston on Dec. 15, they had struggled against the Mustangs’ zone defense. That trend carried over into several other early-season games when an opponent would try to zone up PM.
“We were a little stagnant on offense, not quite getting the movement that we wanted,” Gilbert said. “We’ve really hammered that here over the last week or so. … I thought our movement was much better against the zone tonight.”
The Blues were in a zone of their own early on, with Hamilton scoring nine points as part of a 15-0 run that put PM ahead 19-3 just past the midway point of the first period. Mohler also drained three of her triples in the quarter, which ended with the home side ahead 25-7.
Mohler had passed up an open look from the outside in the opening minutes, instead working the ball down low to Hamilton and notching an assist on the play. Eventually, that interior scoring led to a string of quality outside shots that the junior guard capitalized on.
“Natalie had a wide-open three initially … and she gave that look up. We ended up scoring inside,” Gilbert said. “And then the game came back to Natalie, and she shot the eyes out of it later in the quarter.”
PM extended its lead to 41-12 by halftime. Mohler and Emore scored all of their points in the first half, while Hamilton had 11 markers by the break. The Blues were then able to manage their large advantage throughout the second half.
Tatyana Turner chipped in seven points for PM, while Peira Conner snagged five rebounds. Mohler, Emory Slagle and Addisen Roberts each dished out three assists.
PM 53, HC 16
PM outscored Highland County 31-1 in the first quarter, cruising to a 53-16 win in Monterey on Thursday.
Emore notched 20 points, seven rebounds and five assists as the Blues rolled to another easy district victory. Hamilton added 12 points and five boards, Mohler recorded five points and three assists, and Conner totaled seven rebounds and five helpers.
Colleen Adams led the Rams with nine points and nine rebounds.
PM was slated to play host to Nelson County in a nondistrict game on Monday. The Blues will return to district action at Craig County on Thursday, starting with junior varsity action at 5:30 p.m., before playing a nondistrict game at Altavista on Saturday, with the varsity game only at 2 p.m. PM will conclude the regular season at home against district rival Narrows next Wednesday, Feb. 7, starting with JV action at 5:30 p.m.
