Martinsville Bulletin, Inc.
P. O. Box 3711
204 Broad Street
Martinsville, Virginia 24115
276-638-8801
Toll Free: 800-234-6575
Patriots blast Owls, 93-50
Five players score in double figures for PHCC
Patrick Henry's Jasmine Alston pulls up for a shot during Wednesday's first round of the NJCAA national championship against Prince George's Community College. PHCC routed PGCC 93-50 and Alston led the Lady Patriots with 19 points and 13 rebounds. (Photo by Kenny Webster)
Thursday, March 18, 2010
By JOHNNY BUCK - Bulletin Sports Editor
Patrick Henry Community College had five players score in double figures, dismantling Prince George’s Community College 93-50 on Wednesday night in East Peoria, Ill.
The win allowed PHCC to advance to the quarterfinals of the National Junior College Athletic Association Division II National Tournament. That game will take place at 8:30 p.m. tonight against Johnson County Community College.
“Our girls are playing well right now, but we have no time to celebrate this one,” said Tony Jones, head coach of the Lady Patriots. “We have to get ready for Johnson County Community College, the No. 2 team in the nation.”
Jasmine Alston led the way for PHCC (22-0). Alston scored a game-high 19 points and pulled down a team-leading 13 rebounds.
Kendra Allen added 18 points. Andrea Barbour came close to a triple-double with 11 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists, while Precious Mayberry and Andrea Hauser added 10 points apiece.
“We take advantage of different matchups. We work on that a lot in practice. We have a lot of weapons,” said Jones. “If we see there’s a chink in the armor of the other team, we’re gonna take advantage of whatever your weaknesses are. And Jasmine started out with the hot hand”.
PHCC trailed just once, at 2-0, but quickly turned the tide to lead 12-2.
It was 30-10 with roughly 8 minutes remaining in the first half, and 54-23 at halftime.
“Our girls just played tremendous defense,” said Jones. “They said they wanted to come out and make a statement in this game, which they did.”
PHCC held the Lady Owls to a paltry 22.8 field goal percentage as a team, including a 10 percent mark from behind the arc.
In contrast, the Lady Patriots shot 57.6 percent as a team and 35 percent from downtown.
Patrick Henry must now prepare for Johnson County, from Overland Park, Ka. Unlike No. 7 seed PHCC, the Lady Cavaliers (30-3) earned a first-round bye.
The tournament’s No. 2 seed, Johnson County is making its seventh trip to nationals since 2000, when it won the national championship.
Jones said the Cavaliers’ 6-foot-2 post player leads the way on offense, though they do have “two or three good guards.”
The Lady Pats are the first women’s basketball team to make nationals in their first year as NJCAA members.
“We’re playing the underdog role right now, and I love that,” said Jones. “This is a great experience for our girls and a great experience for me.”
.jpg)
.jpg)
