Despite shooting woes, Mamou advances

MAMOU – Despite shooting just 12.5 percent from the floor, the Mamou Lady Demons held on for a 60- 49 Bi-District playoff win against the South Plaquemines Lady Hurricanes.
The win marked the first playoff victory for new head coach Denetra Allison Lewis. The Lady Demons will host the No. 9 seed Lakeview in the second round on Monday.
“This win feels great,” she said after the game. “I’m so happy for all of our players. We were able to pull out a tough win here at home in front of great fans. It’s the best feeling in the world.”
Although it looked like it was going to be an easy win at the end of the first half, South Plaquemines regrouped at halftime, giving the Lady Demons a scare in the fourth quarter.
At intermission, Mamou led 32-11. The Lady Demons’ intense full-court press was efficient and effective. Mamou was able to generate several turnovers, including three steals on the South Plaquemine half of the court that led directly to lay-ups.
At halftime, however, South Plaquemine head coach Doug Barncastle switched up his strategy and gave some sound advice to his team.
“I told the girls that the biggest thing for us to do was simply to relax,” Barncastle commented. “I told them that the pressure was on Mamou to win. They’re the favored team at home. We needed to relax and play hard.”
If Mamou needed any extra pressure, Barncastle knew how to provide it. The Lady Hurricanes opened the third quarter with a page from the Demon playbook, playing a tough pressing defense.
“We applied some pressure to their ball handlers,” Barncastle explained. “We manned-up on defense and forced them to take bad shots.”
Barncastle’s strategy worked, as the Lady Demons shot just 35 percent in the third quarter.
Meanwhile, South Plaquemines went on a 12-4 run to close out the quarter.
“They did pressure us,” Lewis admitted, “but we handled the ball well, breaking the press without turnovers. “However, it affected us on the offensive side,” she added. “Rather than staying composed, it caused us to rush our shots, and we ended up taking some bad shots and missing easy lay-ups.”
The poor shot selection continued into the fourth quarter, with the Lady Demons missing eight shots in a row at one point. Mamou ended up shooting just 2-for- 16 in the last quarter.
With 1:38 left to play, the Lady Hurricanes had cut the lead down to just seven points, 54-47.
At this point, South Plaquemines was left taking poor shots and fouling Mamou, who was in the double bonus.
At crunch time, however, the senior leadership for Mamou came through. With three seniors, who have playoff experience from last season, the Lady Demons were able sink their free throws to put the game away.
“We had to play great defense at the end,” Lewis said. “And our seniors showed a toughness and tenacity to earn this victory when it seemed the momentum was shifting during the fourth quarter.”
Barncastle was also complimentary of the Lady Demons. “They’re a really good team,” the Lady Hurricane coach said. “They’ve got some good players, and they’re well-coached. I’m proud of my team for working so hard in the second half to tighten things up.”
Four Mamou players finished in double-digits. Braylin Charles led the Lady Demons with 14 points. Ka’zhana Richard netted 12 points; and Darelzray Bellard and Kiajah Wilson each chipped in 11 points.
South Plaquemine’s senior guard Cantasia Smith scored 27 points to lead the game.