Smothering, overwhelming, dominant.
Pick any adjective you’d like, Hillcrest’s first-half defense was borderline flawless in Friday night’s Class 4, District 11 championship game.
The Hornets held Rogersville, which won the COC-Small Division this season, to just 3 points in the first half on their way to a 17-point halftime lead. That was enough cushion for the Hornets hold off the Wildcats in the second half and claim their second straight district championship, winning 54-40.
"It was a very exciting thing to do, especially because (Rogersville) is a really good team," said Hillcrest senior Laurnea Jarman. "For us to hold them to single digits in the first half says a lot.
“We just tried to take the (3-point) shot away and we tried to protect the basket when they drove. It worked.”
PHOTOS: ROGERSVILLE VS. HILLCREST
Did it ever.
Hillcrest’s active 2-3 zone chased Rogersville’s shooters off the perimeter, thanks to aggressive closeouts and frequent double-teams.
“I feel like their feet never stopped moving,” said Hillcrest coach Jeni Hopkins about her players’ defensive efforts.
Rogersville made just one 3-pointer in the game, that coming in the fourth quarter as the Wildcats were in desperation mode.
The game was tied 2-2 early, before Hillcrest scored 14 unanswered points. A lone Rogersville free throw late in the second quarter stopped the Hornets from going into halftime on an 18-0 run.
“We knew Rogersville had a lot of weapons. They shoot it well from outside and have great post play,” Hopkins said. “We knew we’d have to be on the move with every pass. We could not wait for them to catch. We had to be moving with the ball.”
Hillcrest added an extra wrinkle by having senior Mikhala McCullough essentially face-guard Rogersville point guard Hailey Brown – with help coming from another teammate if Brown had the ball – full-court until Brown came across the half-court line. From there, Hillcrest switched into its hectic 2-3 zone.
"Everyone was stepping up, everyone was denying," McCullough said. "(Rogersville wasn't) getting a 3, that's what we were mainly doing."
Rogersville scored the first eight points of the second half, nearly tripling its first-half total in less than four minutes. But, the deficit was too big.
The Wildcats got within nine points twice in the fourth quarter. Hillcrest (16-11 overall) responded to each Rogersville threat, often through the play of senior point guard Kaycee Gerald. She finished with a game-high 28 points and had 6 rebounds, 5 steals and 3 assists while going 12-for-16 at the free throw line.
Jarman added 11 points and 13 rebounds for Hillcrest, who faces either Carthage or Carl Junction in the Class 4 sectional round on Tuesday, March 8 at 6 p.m. at Willard High School.
"It's (winning) districts, so that's just excitable in general," McCullough said. "But I think, for a lot of us, it is different because we lost (three) starters last season, so we're actually starters now as seniors. We felt like we (contributed) more to the (championship) this year than last year, I guess you could say."
Hillcrest and Rogersville combined for 47 fouls and 60 free throw attempts. Rogersville was 17-for-25 at the free throw line; Hillcrest made 23 of its 35 attempts.
Junior Sarah Jordan scored 19 to lead the Wildcats, who finish 17-10 overall and graduate seniors Rachel Jenkins and Audra Metz. Jenkins left the game late in the second quarter with a knee injury and did not return.
Hillcrest 54, Rogersville 40
Hillcrest 11 9 8 26 — 54
Rogersville 2 1 11 26 — 40
Hillcrest – Kaycee Gerald 28, Laurnea Jarman 11, Jasmyn Johnson 6, Whitney Williams 4, Jordan Pryor 3, Mikhala McCullough 1, Sarah Hale 1
Rogersville – Sarah Jordan 19, Jordyn Gault 8, Audra Metz 6, Hailey Brown 3, Olivia Johnston 2, Sarah Posey 2
