A balanced scoring attack and some stout second-half defense propelled Highlands to a 44-20 win over College Prep and Leadership Academy on Tuesday night in the opening round of the NC High School Athletic Association 1-A state playoffs.
Highlands advances to take on Uwharrie Charter School, in Asheboro, on Thursday night.
“I thought we played a really solid all-around game,” Highlands head coach Brett Lamb said. “We were short one player with (AE Woods) out sick, so our other girls had to play some more minutes than maybe they are used to, but it worked out.”
The game started slowly as both teams looked for any offensive advantage. Highlands was content to move the ball around the perimeter to find a shot, while CPLA did their best to get the ball in the paint and use its size advantage.
An and-one basket by Charlotte Westendorf gave the Highlanders a 10-7 advantage after the opening eight minutes.
Neither team found any offensive footing in the second quarter and the pace of the game slowed thanks to both teams playing 2-3 zone defense.
“I was a little hesitant to go man-to-man on defense, or put our press on, because we were a little short on our rotation and I was worried about foul trouble,” Lamb said. “In hindsight I probably should have pressed a little earlier. It worked for us in the second half.”
Highlands defensive intensity picked up in the second half, and the home team was able to put the game out of reach by outscoring the visitors 14-4 in the period. A steal and bucket by Aislynn Wyatt-Luck, followed by a short jumper from Malory Shriver essentially put the game on ice for the Highlanders as they built a 32-15 lead.
Westendorf finished as Highlands’ leading scorer with 11 points on the night. Hunter Conner added a double-double with 10 points and 12 rebounds in the win. Jordyn Borino added 10 points and Wyatt-Luck finished with eight.
CPLA was paced by six points from Melody Johnson, and five apiece from Alexis Holmes and Melissa Massanet.
Following the game, Highlands gathered in Lamb’s office to watch the final minutes of Murphy’s first-round game with Uwharrie Charter to find out Thursday’s matchup. Uwharrie claimed a late come-from-behind victory.
“Obviously, we haven’t seen Uwharrie Charter during the regular season since they are all the way in Asheboro, but we did play them at team camp over the summer at Wofford College,” Lamb said. “We played two very close games with Murphy, and they just lost to Uwharrie by two points, so I’d expect a close game on Thursday.”
Highlands improved to 15-10 on the season with Tuesday’s win.