It's always refreshing when I catch a throwback type game between a couple of contenders and their stars step up and perform down the stretch while new faces enter the horizon. Dekaney appeared on the verge of blowing this game wide open as Jaelyn Richard Harris (LSU signee) simply did whatever she wanted early scoring multiple baskets while defying gravity and when Jasmine Smith dropped a 30 footer, okay 28 footer plus Makeeda Collins nailed one from deep, I thought this might be a long night for Seven Lakes. Brooke Biggot and Bailey Brown had other thoughts, Biggot with a couple of early threes and Brown scoring in the flow kept them close in the first, where they were down 15-11 and once Michelle Fokum and Cydne Varner, the teams two leading scorers, started clicking, Seven Lakes outscored the Wildcats by 7 in the second quarter to take a 26-23 lead
Sophomore Tatiana Hill was huge in the third for Dekaney, she had multiple blocks and put-backs but she has the body and desire to create some problems this season in the Wildcast quest for another run. This game was tense and exciting, I hated to attempt to tweet because it was one of those games where if you blinked, you knew in advance you would miss something and when Varner is clicking from that midrange, well it's something to see. I've always enjoyed watching Fokum play, she's added something every season and if she was 3 inches taller she would be a LEGITIMATE National Top 100 player and watching her on the wing observes her teammate shot was off, Fokum took off, grabbed the offensive rebound and scored the put-back but her effort is something to see over and over
I was impressed with the performance from senior Kene Hamilton, plenty of energy and athleticism and her free throws down the stretch helped seal Dekaney's overtime win however what can I say Richard-Harris that I haven't been saying since she was a freshman, I think I've just about covered how I feel and watching her fill up the stat sheet, with points and assists has become a given but her will to win is second to none and back to back to back steals to force OT and also give her team a chance to win it twice in regulation just about sums t up. Richard -Harris and Fokum were GPR Players of the Game
