by James Tate
The royals end the first half up by 11 points
The Lancers jumped on top of the Royals 10-6 in the first quarter behind senior forward Abuok Ageng’s seven points. Roy scored the next eight points in the quarter to take a 14-10 lead. Roy’s next baskets came from three-pointers by sophomore Jerzee Hart, senior Rhylee Beise, and a last-second layup from junior Nicole Williams.
The second quarter started with Williams passing to Hart for a layup and a 16-10 Royals lead. Royals’ freshman point guard Jazzie Prieto scored next with a driving layup to continue the run and give Roy an 18-10 lead with 7:00 left in the second quarter. The Royal’s lead grew to 10 points after junior Alyea Matinez made a steal and scored on a layup.
The Lancer’s first points of the second quarter came on a three-point shot by Naomi Dominguez to make the score 20-13. The Royal’s next possession saw Martinez drain a three-pointer to make the score 23-13 with 3:52 left before halftime. Martinez scored a total of seven points in the quarter and Roy led 27-16 at halftime.
Second half Lancer’s press causes the Royals’ problems
Granger started the third quarter by applying full-court pressure and causing Roy to commit turnovers. The Lancers cut the lead to 27-20 with 3:26 left in the third quarter. A layup made by Royals senior guard Lylian Rosenberg and a three-pointer by Prieto gave them a 32-24 advantage at the end of the third quarter.
The Lancer’s pressure continued into the fourth quarter, but Roy still held a 36-28 lead with 5:56 remaining. Hart increased the Royals lead 38-28 on a rebound and put back with 4:40 left in the game. Granger closed the lead to three points 38-35 with 2:14 left in the fourth quarter off of Roy’s turnovers.
With two minutes remaining Royals’ senior Taylor Butterfield was fouled and made both free throws to make the score 40-35. After a steal and layup by Ageng, Alexa Lopez made two free throws with 31 seconds left making the score 40-39 in favor of the Royals. A Roy turnover gave the Lancers possession and a chance to win the game with 11 seconds on the clock.
The Lancer’s inbounds play saw Williams grab the ball and tie up the Lancer’s player forcing a jump ball and giving the Royals possession. Rosenberg was fouled and missed the free throw as time expired.
The Royals have opened region play with two straight victories. “Feels really good,” said Rosenberg. “We had a hard time getting our offense started but things are starting to click.” After going 0-9 in non-region games, the Royals have started 2-0 in region play. The Lancers drop to 0-2 in region action.
Outstanding performances
The Lancers Ageng scored a game-high 20 points and played outstanding defense. Guard Binja Chikobe scored eight points for Granger and was key in causing turnovers.
Martinez led the Royals with 10 points. Hart finished with seven points and a career-high 10 rebounds for the Royals. Williams scored seven points, an amazing 20 rebounds, and had the game-winning tie-up at the end of the game.
photo courtesy James Tate of Royals Jerzee Hart