Business Boot Camp
February 4, 2008
Rita Von Senden
February 7, 2008
The Thibodaux girls’ basketball team swept its season series against South Lafourche last week with a 51-48 road victory.
Prior to the game, however, coach Damon Robinson’s players couldn’t help but marvel at the girls’ basketball trophies that festooned their opponent’s hallways.
The Lady Tigers later walked away winners, but they were still envious.
“There’s nothing to commemorate girls’ basketball at our school,” Robinson said. “I don’t believe we’ve had a (girls) district championship here in more than 30 years. These girls want to be remembered for something special.”
With Friday’s home victory over H.L. Bourgeois, Thibodaux inched closer to turning that desire into reality.
The Lady Tigers enter today’s home contest against South Terrebonne tied for first place with Terrebonne in District 8-5A at 9-2.
If Terrebonne wins today’s matchup with South Lafourche, it wins the district title.
Should South Lafourche win, however, Robinson’s squad might finally earn its spot in the annals of school history.
Either way, the Lady Tigers have been red-hot through January and are poised to make some noise in the upcoming playoffs.
“The seniors have finally taken a leadership role on this team,” Robinson explained. “They really want to go out on a high note.”
Particularly senior guards Bridget Brown and Danielle Carter. Brown is averaging 17 points a game and Carter is posting 10.7 rebounds.
“I’m a senior and should be a leader that sets an example for my team,” Carter said. “I realize that this is my last year and my last chance to shine.”
Robinson also called senior guard Kyndra Davis “a great three-point shooter.”
But it’s not just about the upperclassmen.
Far from it.
“I know it sounds cliché, but we’ve had everyone on this team contribute,” Robinson added. “We go about 10 deep on any given night.”
That doesn’t mean there haven’t been bumps along the way – the biggest being the team’s abysmal 0-8 start.
This came in the wake of a season that saw Thibodaux post a 10-4 district mark and 20-10 overall finish.
Nevertheless, the Lady Tigers have rebounded nicely to produce a 14-3 stretch in their last 17 games and now sport a 14-11 overall record.
“Part of the problem at the beginning of this year was the fact that I didn’t carry things over from last season,” Robinson said. “We had a lot of girls attend camps over the summer, so I took things for granted and wasn’t as demanding at the start of the season as I probably should have been.”
Fortunately though, his players are peaking at the right time.
“That’s what happened with the New York Giants,” he said. “We just want to win our next game and get into the playoffs. From there, we want to make a run.”
And they’d especially like to do it as 8-5A champs.
“It’s really important to experience something like a district title,” Carter said. “I think we should be able to win it all and take it home to Thibodaux.”
