West Ridge boys outlast Boone, Lady 'Blazers hold off Lady Wolves

GRAY — Saturday's non-conference clash between West Ridge and Daniel Boone was a defensive struggle throughout, leaving both teams looking for a sliver of daylight down the stretch. It finally came for West Ridge in the form of a clutch 3-point shot by Jackson Light that put the Wolves up 49-45 with 2:37 remaining in the game. They held on from there, dodging a couple good looks by the Trailblazers on their final possession to escape with a 57-54 win. "This is a good win for us," said West Ridge coach John Dyer. "We needed it." The contest was a classic half-court battle. Possessions were at a premium as the Wolves tried to solve Boone's zone and the 'Blazers faced tough sledding against West Ridge's man-to-man defense. The game was deadlocked at 38 heading to the final period. The Wolves, who improved to 15-13 on the season, finally gained the upper hand when their guards started to find some creases in Boone's zone and were able to attack the rim. "They've got great guards that can shoot it, which makes you have to get out and guard," said Boone coach Cody Connell. "They handle it really, really well. They're super-aggressive." Light and Grant Thompson were both able to get into the paint frequently in the final period, and more often than not, they drew contact and ended up at the foul line. Thompson scored eight of his game-high 20 points in the fourth quarter, all of them coming from the foul line. 10 of Light's 16 points came in the final period. "Grant had a real nice game, and Jackson stepped up," Dyer said. Meanwhile, Luke Lawrence and Luka Petrovic helped Boone stay in the game in the second half. Petrovic, a sophomore starting his first game, scored eight of his 14 points in the third quarter while Lawrence 12 of his team-high 19 in the fourth. Despite the fact that West Ridge went 10-for-12 from the foul line in the fourth quarter, the 'Blazers still had one last chance down three with 8 seconds left in the game. They had two good looks from 3-point range on their final possession, but neither one dropped as Boone fell to 11-14. "If you get two good looks at a 3 to tie it up, as a coach, that's part of it," Connell said. "You battle and give yourself a chance at the end. That's all you can ask for." Daniel Boone 81, West Ridge 64 (Girls) The opening game of the matinee doubleheader was a high-octane contest that saw the Lady Trailblazers sprint to a non-conference victory over the Lady Wolves in a battle between two of the top girls' teams in the region. "That's a good measuring stick game," said Boone coach John Good. "That's a good team night in and night out, and Coach (Kristi) Walling always has them prepared." The Lady Trailblazers got off to a fast start, hitting six consecutive field goals at one point during a 14-2 run that pushed their lead to 18-7 in the first quarter. Ayla Masters knocked down a pair of 3-pointers during the run and finished with 14 points. Boone used a variety of players and strategies to try to limit the production of West Ridge standout Carter Jones. Aaliyah Story and Andrea Flores both guarded Jones at times, but she still managed to pour in 18 points to lead her team. After trailing 25-11 at the end of the first quarter, West Ridge put together a 9-0 run to close within 30-24. Boone responded with a couple quick baskets from Story, and a Flores 3-pointer pushed Boone's lead back out to 11 at halftime. It turned out to be a trend as the Lady Trailblazers were able to answer each run the Lady Wolves made in the second half, thanks in large part to Laney Britton, who scored 16 of her 23 points after halftime. Britton added four steals and three assists for Boone, which improved to 22-2. Story stuffed the stat sheet with 17 points, 10 rebounds, seven assists and three blocked shots and Flores added 20 points. "I feel like our effort was better today, but we just missed too many shots," Walling said. "Missed layups turned into transition shots for them, and we turned the ball over way too much. Teagan Tipton scored 13 points for the Lady Wolves, who are now 19-7 on the season. Averie Steadman added 11 points and Millie Shelton scored nine.