Wolverines fight off Tigers after hot start
By ASHLEY CHASE
MVI Sports
A hot start was too much to overcome for the home team as McKeesport fell to Woodland Hills 57-45 in WPIAL 5A girls basketball at Neenie Campbell Gymnasium on Tuesday night.
Woodland Hills opened the contest with a 10-0 run that included a pair of three-pointers, one from Kayla Walter who led the Wolverines with 8 points in the first quarter, 10 in the opening half.
“We had like 5 or 6 empty possessions to start the game and they had four possessions where they scored. We just couldn’t claw ourselves out,” said McKeesport head coach Eric Smith.
“That start, it just killed us. Last time we played them, we were in the same boat, but we cut into it. Tonight we just couldn’t do it, couldn’t finish.”
McKeesport answered the 10-0 run with a 7-0 stretch of its own, including a three from sophomore Malina Boord, who led the way for the Tigers offensively with 5 points in the first quarter and 11 in the half.
Walter and fellow Wolverine, Eastern Michigan commit Peyton Pinkney, knocked down back to back baskets to close out the first quarter with Woodland Hills in front by ten, 19-9.
In the second quarter, the teams traded baskets and steals. The Tigers had six steals in the first half, three from the quickness of senior Carmen Coles.
Both teams were solid from beyond the arc, five from Woodland Hills and three from McKeesport. All of the Tigers treys in the first half were from Boord.
Woodland Hills outscored the Tigers 12-7 in the second and added to its earlier ten point lead to take a commanding 31-16 advantage into the break.
The rainbows continued in the third quarter. Coles came out and dialed up a three to open the scoring in the second.
Woodland Hills immediately responded with back to back threes by Jasmyn Fisher to go up 37-19.
Boord hit a short range jumper, but the future EMU baller Pinkney hit back to back lay-ins to give the Wolverines a 20-point lead, 41-21 with 4:17 to play in the third.
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