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Teams looking to dethrone Lady Cavs
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| College Park guard Monique Smalls is averaging 12.5 points, eight steals and six assists per game for the two-time defending district champion Lady Cavaliers. |
By JAY LANGLEY
With the District 14-5A season tipping off Friday, the College Park Lady Cavaliers appear primed to win a third straight district title.
The Lady Cavs (20-2) open district play at Oak Ridge at 7 p.m. tomorrow. Other district openers include The Woodlands hosting Lufkin and New Caney at Conroe.
The Lady Cavs are ranked No. 2 in Class 5A by the Texas Association of Basketball Coaches. They are 7-2 in games against teams ranked in the top 10 in either 5A or 4A.
But College Park coach Kip Anderson knows her team’s hot start won’t mean much if her team does not get the job done in district play.
“We have played great so far,” Anderson said. “But the first part of the season is all about preparing for the district season. Now is when it really matters.”
Nicole Morgan leads College Park, averaging 16 points and seven rebounds per game. Guard Monique Smalls is averaging 12.5 points, eight steals and six assists per contest. Meagan Janousek, who was the Lady Cavs’ second-leading rebounder a year ago, has missed the entire season to date but will return from injury this week.
Anderson said the Lady Cavs’ biggest threat in District 14-5A should come from Conroe or The Woodlands, teams that finished second and third, respectively, a year ago.
Amanda Anderson leads The Woodlands with 18 points and seven boards per game. The Lady Highlanders are 14-9, but have lost five games by five points or less.
Winning a district title will come down to mental toughness, The Woodlands coach Dana Bruton said.
“We have to minimize our mistakes,” she said. “At times we have been our own worst enemy on the court.
“You really have to limit the mental errors, especially against good teams like we have in our district.”
Conroe (11-13) is led by Tangekur Payne and Candace Virgadamo, who are each averaging 16 points per game.
“College Park has to be the favorite,” Conroe coach Deidre Hinze said. “But every team should go into the season expecting to win a district championship.
“I think we are right where we need to be right now. We are gelling at the right time.”
Oak Ridge is a team that could make noise as a dark horse. The Lady War Eagles (12-9) have already eclipsed last year’s win total of eight. Four of those eight victories came in district play.
“I’m not conceding anything, but I’m realistic,” Oak Ridge coach Molly Gibson said. “College Park is the best team and the rest of us are battling for second place.”
Shayna Clardy and Chelsea Davis lead Oak Ridge with 14 and 10 points per game, respectively.
“We finished fourth in the district last year,” Gibson said. “Our goal is to improve on that and finish in the top three.”
Perhaps no team in the district has been bitten more by the injury bug than New Caney (7-13).
Keia Strother, who led the Lady Eagles in scoring a year ago, was injured during volleyball season and will miss the entire basketball season.
New Caney coach James Bryant knows a losing record heading into district play does not mean anything.
“If we had 20 wins or 20 losses it wouldn’t matter if we don’t make the playoffs,” Bryant said. “Realistically, we hope that we are able to finish fourth in the district.”
Area coaches agree the team outside of Montgomery County could be in the middle of the playoff hunt.
“Lufkin is always a good team,” said Bruton, whose team gets the first crack at the Lady Panthers Friday at 7 p.m. “They have a really quick team that will really run you up and down the court.”
Regardless of records or rankings, coaches agree the district race should be entertaining.
“What’s great about high school basketball is you never know what’s going to happen,” Bruton said. “College Park is the favorite, but you never can tell.”
The Lady Cavs (20-2) open district play at Oak Ridge at 7 p.m. tomorrow. Other district openers include The Woodlands hosting Lufkin and New Caney at Conroe.
The Lady Cavs are ranked No. 2 in Class 5A by the Texas Association of Basketball Coaches. They are 7-2 in games against teams ranked in the top 10 in either 5A or 4A.
But College Park coach Kip Anderson knows her team’s hot start won’t mean much if her team does not get the job done in district play.
“We have played great so far,” Anderson said. “But the first part of the season is all about preparing for the district season. Now is when it really matters.”
Nicole Morgan leads College Park, averaging 16 points and seven rebounds per game. Guard Monique Smalls is averaging 12.5 points, eight steals and six assists per contest. Meagan Janousek, who was the Lady Cavs’ second-leading rebounder a year ago, has missed the entire season to date but will return from injury this week.
Anderson said the Lady Cavs’ biggest threat in District 14-5A should come from Conroe or The Woodlands, teams that finished second and third, respectively, a year ago.
Amanda Anderson leads The Woodlands with 18 points and seven boards per game. The Lady Highlanders are 14-9, but have lost five games by five points or less.
Winning a district title will come down to mental toughness, The Woodlands coach Dana Bruton said.
“We have to minimize our mistakes,” she said. “At times we have been our own worst enemy on the court.
“You really have to limit the mental errors, especially against good teams like we have in our district.”
Conroe (11-13) is led by Tangekur Payne and Candace Virgadamo, who are each averaging 16 points per game.
“College Park has to be the favorite,” Conroe coach Deidre Hinze said. “But every team should go into the season expecting to win a district championship.
“I think we are right where we need to be right now. We are gelling at the right time.”
Oak Ridge is a team that could make noise as a dark horse. The Lady War Eagles (12-9) have already eclipsed last year’s win total of eight. Four of those eight victories came in district play.
“I’m not conceding anything, but I’m realistic,” Oak Ridge coach Molly Gibson said. “College Park is the best team and the rest of us are battling for second place.”
Shayna Clardy and Chelsea Davis lead Oak Ridge with 14 and 10 points per game, respectively.
“We finished fourth in the district last year,” Gibson said. “Our goal is to improve on that and finish in the top three.”
Perhaps no team in the district has been bitten more by the injury bug than New Caney (7-13).
Keia Strother, who led the Lady Eagles in scoring a year ago, was injured during volleyball season and will miss the entire basketball season.
New Caney coach James Bryant knows a losing record heading into district play does not mean anything.
“If we had 20 wins or 20 losses it wouldn’t matter if we don’t make the playoffs,” Bryant said. “Realistically, we hope that we are able to finish fourth in the district.”
Area coaches agree the team outside of Montgomery County could be in the middle of the playoff hunt.
“Lufkin is always a good team,” said Bruton, whose team gets the first crack at the Lady Panthers Friday at 7 p.m. “They have a really quick team that will really run you up and down the court.”
Regardless of records or rankings, coaches agree the district race should be entertaining.
“What’s great about high school basketball is you never know what’s going to happen,” Bruton said. “College Park is the favorite, but you never can tell.”
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