Grafton’s defense nullifies Lady Trojans’ offense in Bay Rivers hoops

New Kent’s Hannah Milby (24) finds an angle for a lay-up against Grafton’s Nathalia McIntyre (3).

Robb Johnson photo

New Kent’s Lady Trojans faced a tall task in the Dec. 15 contest against the invading Grafton Clippers. That battle was made tougher as Lady Trojan leading scorer Katelyn Norman was unavailable for the contest. The combination of the two made for a setback for New Kent.

Grafton opened up the contest with a 13-6 run and took control in the second half as they cruised to a 68-35 victory over New Kent.

Grafton made it tough for the hosts from the onset, with Lady Clipper Taylor Ragland defending the paint. Along with pressure defense, New Kent struggled to find the hoop.

Alline’s Alexander three-pointer for New Kent cut the visitors’ lead to 11 (23-12). But it failed to spark the hosts’ offense. Meanwhile, Grafton would outscore the hosts 15-7 in the rest of the quarter to double-up the home team at the halftime intermission (38-19).

Grafton’s defense continued to clamp down New Kent, only surrendering four points to the Lady Trojans in the third. Meanwhile, the visitors pumped in 18 points to take a comfortable 56-23 lead heading in the final frame. From there, Grafton coasted the rest of the way to victory.

After the contest, New Kent Lady Trojans Head Coach Neko Burson spoke about the adjustments his team needs to make as they head into the holiday break.

“We have to have the next man up mentality,” the coach commented. “Everybody is looking to fight, and we are just scrapping at this point.

“We have to continue to play basketball,” Burson added. “We have to improve on rebounds, cut down on turnovers, and we are too dependent on one person for a while during this season. Everyone must step up and fill those gaps.”

New Kent (4-3) received a game-high 11 from Alexander. Hannah Milby pumped in nine, Aubrey Hyndshaw tossed in seven, Campbell Proffitt contributed six, and Kierstan Otey chipped in with two.