Ladycats roll to 60-37 victory over Graford

Every district game matters no matter the opponent. Both the Newcastle Ladycats and Graford Lady Rabbits understood that when they met up on the basketball court this week.

In an aggressive game Tuesday, Jan. 23 from both sides, the Ladycats came out on top yet again with a 60-37 win over the Lady Rabbits.

The teams fought hard all night. Fouls happened — some called, a lot weren’t — but the Ladycats kept their composure throughout the game as they earned the huge district win.

Newcastle came out of the gate hot per usual. The visitors won the tipoff and Mya Cabrera scored quickly at the rim off an assist from Camden Mallory. The Ladycats put together a quick 9-0 run out of the gate before allowing Graford a trip to the free throw line for one point.

Newcastle’s offense was firing early as they got up 11-1 before allowing Graford to pull back and make it 11-7. However, the Ladycats kept their lead at 13-9 after the first quarter.

Mattie Dollar did one of the things she does best coming out of the quarter break as she knocked down a 3-pointer off an assist from Mallory. She did it again a few minutes later, as she pulled up on her own and hit it.

Graford struggled against Newcastle’s interior defense. Cabrera provided height in the key while outside defenders helped crash down on drives into the lane. Although the Lady Rabbits managed some points on Ladycats defensive lapses, Newcastle’s offense was strong enough to maintain a 30-22 lead at halftime.

A large part of what makes or breaks a game for any team are the halftime adjustments. Graford came out of the locker room determined to shut down Dollar, Newcastle’s leading scorer at that point.

While it may have worked to some degree, Dollar’s teammates picked things up around her and she still managed to get herself open for shots, as well. Dollar hit two 3-pointers in the opening minutes to put her team up 36-24.

Next possession, Dollar found Sophie Terrell open for two points. Cabrera continued to be a force in the paint on offense and defense. She shot seven free throws in the game and nailed all seven for a 100% free throw percentage.

As Graford became more desperate and Newcastle’s lead grew, the Lady Rabbits got frustrated and began fouling more. In addition to Cabrera, Dollar shot six free throws in the game, converting on five of them (83%).

With Newcastle holding a 52-29 lead moving into the fourth quarter, both teams slowed down. The Ladycats held onto the ball for long possessions while Graford couldn’t muster much more energy.

Dollar and Cabrera did most of the scoring damage in the final period until Kenzie King found herself open under the basket for two points in the final minutes. When the buzzer sounded, the Ladycats walked off with a huge 60-37 victory.

Newcastle kept a tight rotation in this game as six players saw the court and five of them recorded points, led by Dollar with a game-high 27 points. Cabrera finished second with 17 points and a game-high nine rebounds. Mallory and King each had 6 points while Terrell finished with 4 points.

After a game Friday at Throckmorton, the Ladycats will hit the road again for a district contest Tuesday, Jan. 30 against Garner.