GAINESVILLE — Jarvis Davenport could do little but roll his eyes at the 6-for-18 showing at the free throw line for his White County girls basketball team Tuesday night.
However, Davenport also had a hard time containing a big smile when presented with the 27 turnovers the Lady Warriors produced in a 50-45 win over rival North Hall at the North Hall gym.
“Well, you have to make free throws, and we missed a lot of layups,” Davenport said. “You can’t keep doing that and win most nights. But I did like the way we played defense.
“This group is another year experienced and really is still learning how to handle certain situations. Turning teams over at the end of the game is an area we were not at last year. We’re improving and that’s what you want every week, every game.”
The Lady Warriors (2-2) used 16 of those turnovers in the second half first to build a 35-27 lead with an 11-5 run sparked by four consecutive North Hall (1-2) turnovers. Then they forced three straight turnovers in the final minute to score the final four points and hold off a furious Lady Trojans rally.
Both teams used their defense early in the game to generate points. The Lady Warriors forced five quick North Hall turnovers but only led 4-0 on a pair of Dasha Cannon field goals. The Lady Trojans took their first, and only, lead at 5-4 on a Maci Gillespie 3-pointer and a Rylee McCall free throw with 1:50 left in the first quarter.
White County, however, answered with a 9-2 run into the second quarter for a 13-7 lead, capped by a Maddie Futch basket off a dish from Cannon. North Hall answered with its own run, a 12-6 spurt capped by a Grace Hollifield basket to tie the game at 19 with just under two minutes left in the first half.
Bentley Cronic gave the Lady Warriors a 22-19 halftime lead with a free throw and a basket in the final 26 seconds.
Cronic continued her hot hand to open the third quarter with a pair of 3-pointers to push the White County lead to 30-23. A Cannon trey and a Makenna Moose basket off a Cannon dish pushed it to 35-27 with less than a minute left in the third quarter.
It could have been a much bigger lead had the Lady Warriors not missed six consecutive free throws at one point and missed 10 of their first 12 free throws overall in the game.
North Hall took advantage of the missed opportunities staging a furious rally as Hollifield and Kaylie Bell each drained 3-pointers in the final 41 seconds of the third quarter and McCall opened the fourth quarter with a basket to cap an 8-0 run to tie the game. But the Lady Trojans could never recapture the lead as Naomi Crumley and Futch each scored to reclaim the lead for good for the Lady Warriors.
North Hall pulled within 46-45 on a 3-pointer by McCall with 1:25 left but Cannon and Futch, when they needed them most, hit 4-of-6 free throws in the final 1:19 to seal the win.
“We’ve changed a few things on offense and we let the girls create some things to make plays on that end,” Davenport said. “They’re doing a better job of that. Learning how to hold onto a lead is part of the process and they’re learning how to do that.”
Cronic finished with 13 points to lead White County. Futch and Cannon each added 12 points for the Lady Warriors. Cannon also finished with 6 assists for White County.
McCall had 11 points to lead North Hall. Ansleigh Ferguson had a big game for the Lady Trojans with 10 points, 10 rebounds, and 4 blocks.
NORTH HALL BOYS 59
WHITE COUNTY 45
White County scored first on an Austin Harris basket but never led again as North Hall answered with a 12-0 run, sparked by a pair of Drew Faulkner 3-pointers, to take control en route to their first win of the season.
The Warriors (1-3) managed to get back within 12-9 early in the second quarter on a Will Sampson basket but the Trojans (1-2) responded with a 15-1 run, capped by a J.T. Fair basket, for a 27-10 lead.
North Hall pushed its lead to 39-20 early in the third quarter on a Logan Jackson stick back basket. White County would not go away using a 14-6 spurt to get within 45-34 moments into the fourth quarter.
The Warriors, however, could not get closer as three consecutive turnovers sparked a 10-2 run North Hall run for a 55-36 lead.
Faulkner led a balanced North Hall offense with 11 points. Fair finished with 10 and Luke Gunter and Brock Cooper each chipped in 8 points for the Trojans.
Austin Harris led all scorers with 22 points. Chandler Harris added 13 for the Warriors.
