JEFFERSON —The alarm clock was apparently set for almost halftime for the Jefferson Lady Dragons Friday night at The Arena.
That's when they finally woke up.
The Lady Dragons rallied in the second half to knock off Region 8-3A co-leader Hart County, 66-61, creating a tie for second in the standings.
Trailing 28-14 midway through the second quarter, Jefferson started to shake the slow start, outscoring Hart County 19-12 and closing the gap to 40-33 at the half.
“I just didn’t think we were guarding,” Jefferson coach Greg Brown said. “I didn’t think we were being very physical, and we weren’t being very aggressive. We had a nice little talk at halftime, and made some really good adjustments going into the second half.”
Thanks to the halftime adjustments, Jefferson took over the game in the third quarter. The Lady Dragons outscored the Lady Bulldogs 18-6 in the third and were able to gain control of the lead for the first time.
Deshona Gaither's six-straight points pushed Jefferson to a one-point lead. Natalia Bolden followed Gaither's lead, hitting a wide-open layup off a sick spin move to the basket. Bolden's bucket pushed the Lady Dragon lead up to three points with 1:15 to in the third quarter.
Gaither and Livi Blackstock made sure the Lady Dragons wouldn't lose the lead again, scoring several times in the final quarter. Blackstock finished with 18 points, while Gaither had 14.
Torrion Starks led the way for the Lady Bulldogs with 25 points.
The Lady Dragons (14-2, 4-1) will host Jackson County Tuesday. Game time is 6 p.m.
JEFFERSON 59 BOYS
HART COUNTY 54
The Dragons survived a big push from Hart County Friday night to stay near the top of the Region 8-3A standings.
Jefferson looked to be running away with the game, leading 32-21 at the half, but the Bulldogs (11-4, 3-1) came out on a mission in the third quarter.
Hart turned up the pressure and outshot the Dragons 13-4 in the third quarter, closing the game to two points, 36-34.
“We’ve played 16 games now, and all five of our losses have been within 10 points,” Jefferson coach Kevin Morris said. “I think this is the benefit from having that tough schedule and playing those close games. What a team effort. Everybody stepped up and did what they could to help the team.”
Spencer Darby ignited the Dragons in the fourth quarter, scoring the first two buckets. His points seemed to get the Jefferson offense back on track. Darby finished the night with a team-high 11 points.
With 2:15 left in the fourth, leading 49-48, the Dragons went on an 8-0 to put the game out of reach.
Daniel Parker nailed four straight free throws in the last 30 seconds to give Jefferson the extra cushion to their lead.
The Dragons had two other players in double figures – Kam Robinson and Jacob Radaker chipped in 10 each.
Hart County’s Elijah Robinson led all scorers with 24 points.
Jefferson (11-5, 4-1) will host Jackson County Tuesday. Tip-off is 7:30 p.m.
