Miles hires LSU alum as DB coach
March 12, 2012This Weekend At Cajun Country Lounge
March 13, 2012
For more than 20 years, the Vandebilt girls’ basketball team has had the same offensive philosophy: play from the inside-out.
Thursday night at the LHSAA Top 28 Class 4A State Semifinals, the Lady Terriers got beat by a dose of their own medicine.
Thanks to 12 point, nine rebound and three block performance from Salmen 6-foot, 4-inch freshman center Kalani Brown, the No. 3 Lady Spartans controlled No. 2 Vandebilt early and often in the paint, leading after all four quarters of a 51-42 victory.
The loss ends the Lady Terriers’ run at a second state championship with a 29-4 record. It also marks the second-straight season Vandebilt’s hopes are dashed in the state semifinals after winning the 2009-10 state championship.
“This was the first time we’ve gone against someone bigger than me,” Vandebilt’s 6-foot, 3-inch junior center D’Arcy Draper said. “And it made it harder to run a high-low post offense with someone so big defending on the paint.”
“We were really outnumbered,” junior guard Shakira Harding added. “They were very athletic and we just couldn’t match it. They were bigger, faster, stronger – all of that. I think we did the best to contain them, but just couldn’t come out on top.”
Salmen’s run to the finals started from the get-go in Thursday’s game, played in the University Center on Southeastern Louisiana University’s campus.
The Lady Spartans jumped out of the gate early and opened on a 6-0 run, before using a 16-9 second quarter spurt to take a 31-22 halftime lead.
Brown scored all but two of her points in the opening half to force the Lady Terriers to play with a deficit – something they hadn’t done often throughout most of their season.
Both Draper and Harding, who led the team in scoring on the night with 18 points, offered different explanations about why Vandebilt struggled to find an early rhythm.
“They are used to playing on a college-sized court,” Draper said. “We play on a smaller court. It hurt us because they are a very fast-paced team who wants to rush down and score quickly. In most of their games, the opposing teams held the ball on offense anywhere from five-to-eight minutes longer. We were letting them set the tempo. We needed to slow the game down and keep the offense flowing.”
“The way we played, honestly, was way too cautious,” Harding added. “I guess the feeling of the big arena made us, not just the younger players, but everyone, a little uncomfortable.”
Vandebilt found a bit of a rhythm in the second half and contained Brown in the paint, which allowed the Lady Terriers to somewhat control Salmen’s offense.
Vandebilt and Salmen played to an even 20-20 draw in the second half, which was very competitively spirited between the teams.
But because the Lady Terriers utilized so many bodies in the paint, the Lady Spartan’s perimeter scorers were able to hit big shots down the stretch to thwart Vandebilt’s runs and seal the victory.
With the win, Salmen moved to the Class 4A state finals to take on No. 1 St. Thomas More, who pounded Benton 67-47 in the other semifinal matchup.
While the Lady Spartans play on, the Lady Terriers are left saying goodbye to two of their own.
Thursday’s loss marked the final games of the careers of seniors Abby Knight and Leah Washington.
Like she’s done virtually her entire career, Washington was a force in the paint in her final prep game, recording 11 points and 12 rebounds.
Knight didn’t score, but did play in the game.
Draper said replacing the two players will be the biggest challenges of Vandebilt’s offseason.
She added the experience will be new to the team, because it had no seniors last season.
“Seeing Leah and Abby go will be the hardest part of this season,” Draper said. “In eighth grade, my team in Florida had no seniors. In ninth grade, my team at Country Day had a few seniors, but I attended Vandebilt the next year so I didn’t have to deal with the loss of our seniors. My sophomore year, we didn’t have any seniors again.
“This will be my first year actually seeing my seniors go, and I’m a junior. I guess I got kind of lucky, but it that will make this year that much harder. We are all so close, and losing 2 members of the family will really hurt.”
Harding agreed and said one of the biggest challenges about the departures is the realization that next season is officially her final year at the prep level.
“[Next year], we will be the ones making all the decisions and leading the team to hopefully another state championship,” Harding said. [Leah and Abby] both did a really great job this year taking over and keeping the team focused. … They were great role models for our younger players.”
Talent-wise, Vandebilt will not be lacking, even with the departures.
While the Lady Terriers lose two seniors, they will gain two players as well. Juniors Laci LeBlanc and Jasmine Howard will return to Vandebilt’s lineup in 2012-13 after missing all of this season with injuries.
Coming into this season, the duo were projected to be two of the team’s best players. Once they went down, many across the state figured Vandebilt was doomed in their quest to make a playoff run.
Those naysayers were obviously proven wrong by the team’s latest semifinals push.
Fully healthy in 2012-13, Harding and Draper believe the Lady Terriers have as good a shot as anyone to cut down the nets.
“We’ll have all of our weapons back,” Harding said. “And all the younger players that got experience this year will be just that far ahead of other team’s sixth and seventh men. They’ll know what to expect from the high school level, and they’ll already be accustomed to how we play and our style of basketball.”
“We are ready to do damage already,” Draper added. “The loss is a blessing in disguise. I hate losing more than anything, and [next year is] our final year together. So you can expect a different team next year. I’m ready to put the work in this summer to come back and win a state championship, and so are my teammates. Next year is going to be a great year for us.”
Vandebilt guard Shakira Harding makes a move during a game this season. Harding is one of many returnees that have Vandebilt excited about their state championship prospects next season.
