By Justin Mathis/The Spartanburg Sports Report
Prior to their first-round game in the 2A playoffs against Saluda on Tuesday evening, the Landrum Lady Cardinals went back to basics and worked on a few things, which included playing tough defense.
In the end, the hard work paid off as the Lady Cardinals claimed a 66-47 victory over the Saluda Lady Tigers (10-11).
It didn’t take long for a five-point Landrum lead to balloon out to double digits by the midway point of the third quarter, courtesy of the Lady Cardinals’ efforts on defense, which forced Saluda to turn the ball over and created numerous opportunities on offense for Landrum.
“Defense has been our number one priority this year,” Landrum head coach Deon Brice said. “I had kind of gotten away from it, so we went back to basics – play solid defense and get that to generate our offense, which works a lot better.”
Sara Price was a catalyst for Landrum, not only on defense, but on offense as well. She had 12 points at the halftime break, including a pair of three-pointers, and finished the game with a team-high 22 in the win.
“It definitely frazzles the (opposing) offense,” Price stated, referencing Landrum’s defensive pressure. “If we can get easy baskets, that’s an easy two points and also gets in their heads as well. I knew that if I had the chance to shoot, I needed to do it.”
Price was one of four Lady Cardinals who finished with double-digit point totals. Lindsay Hardin and Kaylee Huntley each chipped in 13 points apiece, while Ellen Boatwright had 12.
Star Ergle finished with a game-high 28 points in the loss for Saluda.
With the win, second-seeded Landrum (21-3) advances to the second round on Friday, February 17th and will get another home game after the number four seed Chesterfield Lady Golden Rams defeated top seed Ninety-Six 52-50 on Tuesday.
