What better way to end 2016 with a basketball game featuring
two unbeaten teams?
That’s what is in store on Friday night (Dec. 30), when
Xavier Prep (13-0) meets Phoenix Sierra Linda (11-0) on the final day of the
Red Mountain Holiday Classic at Red Mountain High in east Mesa. The game will
begin at 6:30 p.m.
Both teams advanced with impressive victories on Thursday
(Dec. 29).
Xavier routed Mission Prep of San Luis Obispo, Calif.,
60-27, and Sierra Linda rolled past Chandler High, 61-37.
“They (Sierra Linda) are a very quick, athletic team. They
have added some size and have one of the top point guards. We will have our
hands full,’’ said Xavier coach Stephen Moss.
In past years, Xavier has played in tournaments such as this
one, and its record wasn’t nearly as good.
“This time, we are in a good place and that is a good sign
for our program,’’ Moss said.
Sierra Linda also should have its hands full with the
Gators, particularly if they play the way they did on Thursday.
Xavier poured in eight 3-point shots, half of them by
Brittany Robinson in the first half (the teams played two 16-minute halves
instead of the usual four 8-minute quarters). Point guard Leilani McIntosh hit
a pair of long shots, while Addison Putnam and Isabel Wirth each had one.
Moss said that Robinson, a senior who scored 13 points, “came
to play and that’s what I expect.’’
He added that Robinson “is in good spirits’’ after being
involved in an auto accident a few weeks ago.
McIntosh, a sophomore, was her usual effective self. She
scored about half of her game-high 18 points as the result of steals.
The Gators also featured some of their best passing of the
season.
“We talked about having good passes before the game,’’ Moss
said. “Sometimes you need to fake a pass to make a pass, don’t directly stare
down your teammates. We did a lot better job.’’
The coach called Thursday’s triumph a good team win.
“We have four games in four days, so having a productive
bench is important so the starters don’t get tired,’’ he said.
On a related note, Moss is encouraged by the progress of
junior forward Alana Kelley as she recovers from knee surgery. Moss said that
it is possible that Kelley could see some time in the last few games of the
regular season and in the playoffs.
No comments:
Post a Comment