The victory was the sixth in a row and eighth in the last nine games for Brownwood (16-6), which started the contest with eight of the first 10 points and followed with an 11-2 spurt at the start of the second half after Nolan Catholic trimmed the deficit to 25-24 at the break.
“We started off both halves really well,” said Lady Lions head coach Heather Hohertz. “(Nolan Catholic) was active and made a run at us when we were stagnant offensively and defensively in the first half and playing back on our heels. They hit some three-pointers in the first half, but we regrouped at halftime and responded really well to the adjustments we made.”
Hannah Deen led the charge for the Lady Lions with 17 points and nine rebounds, trailed by 12 points from Icess Hall, six each from Trinity Roberts and Nylah Hall, five from Jade Morin, and three points apiece from Kate Tindol and Miranda Northcutt.
“We talked about doing less with her dribbles, making a simple basketball play, getting to the rim and finishing,” Hohertz said of Deen’s recent offensive revival. “It’s good to see that coming back.”
For Nolan Catholic, Olivia Clark led the way with 12 points followed by Mattie O’Keefe with nine, Madison Inocando with eight – all coming in the first half – Charlotte Doucet with four, Selenna Romero with three, and Abby Smith with two points.
The Lady Lions converted 19 of 41 shots, including 5 of 15 three-pointers as four long-range darts hit the bullseye during the decisive third period.
Up by one to start the second half, Deen scored following an offensive rebound to push the lead to 27-24, then Icess Hall, Nylah Hall and Roberts in succession knocked down treys to stretch the advantage to 36-26 – the first double-digit cushion of the game for Brownwood.
“We’re good shooters, they prove it everyday in practice, it’s just whether or not they have the confidence to see it go through the hoop during games,” Hohertz said. “We shot the ball well tonight, and that’s what won us the ball game, along with getting some stops in the second half.”
Nolan Catholic crept within 38-34 with 55 seconds left in the third period, but the Lady Lions ended that quarter and started the last with eight points in a row – another trey by Icess Hall, buckets from Deen and Roberts, and a Northcutt free throw – to open a comfortable 46-34 edge with 5:22 remaining.
Along with not surrendering a three-pointer in the second half, the Brownwood defense finished the game with 25 takeaways, including 15 via steals.
“We talked about being there on the catch,” Hohertz said of the defense. “We were back on our heels, not being active and we were able to get there on No. 0 (Inocando) when she caught it and looked to shoot her three-pointers in the second half. We adjusted to that and stayed active.”
The Lady Lions will face Lake Country Christian out of Fort Worth at 8 p.m. Saturday at the Brownwood Coliseum in the final game of the TexasBank Holiday Classic which will determine the Girls Big School Bracket champion.
“Lake Country has two players that can go,” Hohertz said. “We’re going to have to know where their point guard is and stop her in transition because she likes to push the ball. If you’re not ready, she’ll get it to her playmaker’s hands.”