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JPII girls claim first playoff win in five years




JP II's L.A. Pearson shouts a technical foul against Baylor.David Cardaciotto

JP II’s L.A. Pearson shouts a technical foul against Baylor.David Cardaciotto

HENDERSONVILLE — The Pope John Paul II girls beat basketball team cruised past Baylor 55-41 on Tuesday for the team’s first playoff win since 2014.

The win sends the Lady Knights to Memphis to take on Hutchison School on Friday with a ticket to the Division II-AA state tournament Feb 28-March 2 at Lipscomb University in Nashville on the line.

The Lady Knights haven’t qualified for the state tournament since 2011. But the team didn’t talk about the playoff drought, according to JPII coach Angie Puckett.

“We just tried to take it one game at a time,” she said.

In their matchup with Hutchison, JPII will look to employ the same game plan it used against Baylor.

“We’re going to pressure them a lot,” Puckett said. “Our offense is created by our defense.”

JPII used a full-court press to create turnovers and an 11-point lead at the end of the first quarter. After missing their first seven shots, the Lady Knights finished the quarter on a 15-0 run to take a 15-4 lead.

JP II's Keyonna Chumbley drives into Baylor's Courtney Restelli/David Cardaciotto

JP II’s Keyonna Chumbley drives into Baylor’s Courtney Restelli/David Cardaciotto

“We really tried to keep them from hitting 3-pointers,” Puckett said. “They have multiple girls who can shoot, we knew we had to defend.”

In the second quarter, it was Baylor who put together an 11-2 run and finished the quarter with a buzzer-beater by Bella White to cut JPII’s lead to 21-19 heading into halftime.

“We went to a 2-3 zone early in the second quarter,” Puckett said. “They hit a couple of open shots.”

At halftime, Puckett told her team to stay aggressive and rebound better.

“They had out-rebounded us in the first half,” Puckett said. “We needed to make sure they didn’t get second and third opportunities. Offensively, we wanted to continue to attack.”

JP II's Katelyn O'Neill shoots against BaylorDavid Cardaciotto

JP II’s Katelyn O’Neill shoots against BaylorDavid Cardaciotto

JPII opened the third quarter with a 10-2 run to grab a 31-21 lead and regain control of the game. After three quarters, JPII led 37-30.

However, two starters for the Lady Knights, Keonna Chumbley and Ashley Malone, were saddled with four fouls.

“We have girls that are very aggressive who are learning to play in foul trouble,” Puckett said.

“I thought about playing straight defense and not worry about it,” Chumbley added.

In the fourth quarter, JPII stretched its lead to as many as 17 points at 51-34 before finishing with a 55-41 victory. It was the third time JPII has beaten Baylor this season.

“We were just saying we need to come in ready to play and don’t think we have an advantage against them,” Chumbley said, crediting her team’s defensive effort for delivering the win. “We were working together as a team.”

JP II coach Angie Puckett goes over a play as they play Baylor.David Cardaciotto

JP II coach Angie Puckett goes over a play as they play Baylor.David Cardaciotto

Chumbley led the Lady Knights with 21 points.

“Keonna was amazing tonight,” Puckett said. “She has such a high motor. She does whatever the team needs. She was rebounding. She was at the top of every statistical category.”

L.A. Pearson added 12 points for JPII. The win improved JPII’s record to 17-9.

“We’ve come a long way,” Puckett said. “We won four games last year.”

 

BOX SCORE

JPII (55): Keonna Chumbley 21, L.A. Pearson 12, Ashley Malone 8, Lillie Van Metre 7, Anastin Lee 5, Katelyn O’Neill 2

Baylor (41): Hayden Barton 14, Bella White7, Britt Barton 7, Brooklyn Gordon 7, Kourtney Restelli 2, Cadashia Collins 2, Macy Ann McKnight 2

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