Lee Women Win In Second Round Of SSAC Tournament
Thursday, February 28, 2013
Led by Myriah Iles' 18 points and eight rebounds, the seventh-ranked Lee women's basketball team showed why it is 28-2 on Thursday morning in the second round of play in the Southern States Athletic Conference Tournament.
Balance was the key for coach Marty Rowe's club. Four players scored in double figures and two others followed closely as the Lady Flames broke open a close game by out-scoring the University of Mobile, 44-26 in the second half and posted the convincing 83-58 victory.
The Lady Flames advanced to face Coastal Georgia, a 68-46 winner over Auburn-Montgomery, on Friday at 3 p.m. EST in the tourney's semi-final round.
Jenna Adams had 12 points and nine rebounds. She knocked down a pair of 3-pointers, and as a team Lee converted 10-of-24 shots from behind the arc. Julia Zimmerman fired seven 3-balls at the basket and connected on four in collecting 12 points.
Karley Miller came on strong in the second half and posted a double-double, 11 points and 10 rebounds. Rachel Lockhart was steady from start to finish and tossed in a couple of 3s and totaled eight points, six rebounds and two assists. Brooke Hamby added two markers, but dished off seven assists.
"How many times do you expect our team to win when Hollie (German) goes 1-of-13 shooting?" asked Rowe after his team advanced. "I can promise you it would not have happened last year. These girls have come together and just keep getting better."
German, the SSAC Player of the Year tallied nine points, but as Rowe pointed out, had a team-leading eight assists. "She was taking a lot of hits, but this showed we have a lot of players that can contribute. Mary Jackson only had two points, but she had five rebounds and played an excellent game." The Lady Flames controlled the boards 45-23.
For the game, Lee was solid across the board, shooting 48 percent overall, 42 percent from 3-point range and 85 percent (11-of-13) from the charity stripe. The Lady Flames dominated the Rams by outscoring them, 34-13 in points off the bench and 42-16 in points in the paint.
Brianna Edwards helped keep the Rams close early and finished with 18 points and five rebounds. Courtney Bayliss was the only other Mobile player in double figures (11). The Rams conclude their season at 16-14.