George Wythe rallies in fourth quarter to knock off Lady Panthers
Charles City's Jaelah Wyatt (21) forges a path to the basket against George Wythe's Janiesha Rush and Tiranise Allen (22).Andre' Jones photo
Heading down the stretch with a seven-point lead, Charles City’s Lady Panthers looked to be in control of the invading George Wythe Lady Bulldogs during the Jan. 24 contest.
But the guests executed in two areas down the stretch of the game, lay-ups and free throws, while those key points plagued Charles City all night long. Those facets sparked a 17-3 run to end the contest with George Wythe escaping with a 51-45 win.
Charles City leading scorer Santaesha Hickman started hot, scoring seven of the team’s first 11 points to propel the hosts to an early lead after the first frame (11-5). And after building their lead to seven, George Wythe made their first run of the night. A three-pointer by Meshauh Hill coupled with back-to-back lay-ins by Katamala Green knotted the contest at 13 apiece. Both teams continued to exchange scores and settled with a tie at 19 heading into the intermission break.
Hill’s three-pointer bestowed the visitor’s first lead of the night, with a second three midway through the frame to up the advantage to four (29-25). But at the 2:10 mark, Charles City freshman Skye Bradby connected with back-to-back trifectas, the first to tie the score at 30 and the second to take the lead. Hickman’s freebies at the end pushed Charles City’s advantage to five heading into the fourth (35-30).
A third Bradby long-distance connection returned a seven-point lead to the Lady Panthers at the 5:20 mark in the fourth (41-34).
But foul trouble began to play part in defensive strategy for the hosts. With starter Jaelah Wyatt fouled out and teammates Veondra Brown and Hickman sitting on four, George Wythe became more aggressive. Tiranise Allen’s follow and Jakara Barnes jumper cut the Lady Panthers lead to three. Moments later, Hill’s lay-in conversion and wing three-pointer gave the Lady Bulldogs a two-point advantage (43-41).
Trailing by three, Brown went to the stripe for the hosts, converting one of two. A steal by Hickman seemed to lead to an easy lay-in. But the ball caromed off the rim, with George Wythe scoring on the transition break a six-point lead (49-43).
Hickman made amends with an easy basket before George Wythe elected to call timeout with 11.8 seconds remaining. After a Charles City foul, Hill stepped to line for the one-and-one bonus situation. Hill missed the front end of the shot attempt, but a mental breakdown saw no players attempt to rebound the ball. An aware Hill gathered it and followed the shot in what would lead to the final score of the contest.
A frustrated Lady Panther head coach VaShaun Otey declined comment about the contest as he watched his team fall to 4-11 on the year.
Charles City’s Hickman scored 22 points to lead all scorers in the game. Bradby finished with 15, Brown added five, Kailin Holland pitched in with two, and Alexis Betts chipped in with one.
George Wythe’s Hill contributed 16 points to lead the visitors in scoring.