CROTHERSVILLE
It’s a lot easier to win games when you start on a 22-0 run.
The Crothersville girls basketball team held Rock Creek Academy to zero points in the first quarter Monday and cruised to a 69-36 win on senior night.
Katrina Christian and Alexis Adair combined for 18 points in the first quarter, and the Tigers defense forced eight turnovers to take a 22-0 lead after eight minutes.
“We were just trying to stay in a zone (defense),” Crothersville coach Kevin Hensley said. “We’re trying to work on our zone more. We want to see how good we can play zone for the upcoming games, and clogging the lanes without getting easy buckets.”
Payton Blackburn scored the Lions’ first basket of the game at the 7:45 mark in the second quarter.
A basket by freshman Kalynda Hoevener put the Tigers up 29-4 with 4:45 remaining in the half.
Freshman Nikki Hickman had a solid second quarter netting nine of her game-high 14 points.
At the half, Crothersville had built a 43-15 lead.
With the massive headstart, the Tigers were able to give minutes to a number of underclassmen.
“Before we came out, I told the girls that the score got out of hand at halftime,” Hensley said. “I told my starters I was going with the bench. I want our bench picking up our game. We can’t just have the starters doing it all the time. We wanted them to pick up their offensive game, and I think they did.”
The Tigers starters only saw a couple minutes of play in the second half, which allowed Hensley to empty his bench in the third quarter.
With a 43-15 lead after 24 minutes, Crothersville cruised to the win.
Cassidy Mantz scored a bench-high 10 points.
The Tigers out-rebounded the Lions 38-27 and were led by Christian’s eight boards.
All 11 Tigers dressed for the game and scored against the Lions.
The victory snapped a four-game skid for the home team.
“We have to get back on that winning streak that we were on,” Hensley said. “This is a start of a building block for us to get back to where we were.”
Rebecca Hensley was honored for her four years of service on the team.
“She has always brought energy to our team,” Kevin Hensley said. “She’s the first girl that I’ve had go all four years on varsity. It’s a blessing to have her. I’m really proud of her and how she’s matured over the years.”
On Saturday, the Tigers (13-10) will conclude their regular season at Clarksville.