The Pampa Lady Harvesters (6-10, 1-2) hosted the Borger Lady Bulldogs on Tuesday as they continued District play. The Lady Harvesters defense stifled the Lady Bulldogs and held them to two points over the course of almost two quarters, leading to a 41-28 win over their rival.
“Anytime you can get a district win, it’s huge,” Head Coach Clint Watson. “Especially against Borger, a rival.
“You know you’re going to take their best shot. We took their shot, regrouped after halftime, and played defense to limit them to two points in the third quarter. That’s kind of what separated us from them. We take care of business Friday against Hereford, and we will be 2-2 at the break.”
Freshman Emmy Boutsamaly put Pampa on the board at the 5:45 mark in the first quarter with a three to tie the game. Senior Berlin Barlett later added a three to slow a Borger run and keep Pampa within one at 7-6 with 55 seconds left in the opening quarter. Borger added another three and took a 10-7 lead after one.
After threes from freshman Brooklyn Warren and senior Cambree Dyer, along with a bucket from Bartlett, the Lady Harvesters and Lady Bulldogs were locked at 15-15 with 5:10 left in the half. From that point, there was a points drought in the game. Aside from a free throw from sophomore Makenna Kotara, the game stayed 16-15 until the 7:10 mark in the third quarter when Dyer hit consecutive mid-range jumpers.
“Three-pointers weren’t falling early and we attacked off of our pick-and-roll and they were kind of switching. They were getting the advantage,” Watson said.
“Our girls are good about if the threes aren’t falling, we attack the hoop and try to get a mid-range, lay-up or free throw. They were adjusting on the fly and Cambree’s good. She’s added some moves to her arsenal. She can shoot and is a mismatch.”
Bartlett hit a pair of threes to extend Pampa’s lead in the third quarter to 32-17 and by the end of the third quarter, Pampa had taken a dominant 35-17 lead, out-scoring Borger 19-2 in the third quarter.
The Lady Harvesters added four points in the fourth quarter, including senior Briley Daniels at the 3:48 mark to extend the lead to 39-21.
“Briley has been huge in helping with the ball-handling duty and getting Berlin off the ball,” Watson said. “Her toughness in getting from Point A to Point B and making the right read has been huge. She’s like a quarterback on the court.”
The Lady Harvesters will return to action Friday when they host the Hereford Lady Whitefaces at around 6 p.m.
“I think Friday will be more of a perimeter game,” Watson said. “They have more guards similar to us. So it’ll be quick and an up-tempo game. I expect both teams to press and play full court for 32 minutes.”
STAT ROUNDUP
Berlin Bartlett led the team in scoring with 19 points off three three-pointers and was 2-4 from the stripe; Cambree Dyer had nine points with a three; Briley Daniels had five points with one three; Emmy Boutsamaly had four points with a three and went 1-2 in free throws; Brooklyn Warren had three points off a trey; Kenna Kotara had a point after going 1-2 in free throws.
