Lady Leopards rout PG, 73-40

TEXARKANA, Texas — Liberty-Eylau changed the pace in the second half and turned a 5-point lead into a lop-sided victory over Pleasant Grove.

The Lady Leopards built a 15-point advantage with an 11-0 run and led by 24 after three quarters en route to a 73-40 win Tuesday in District 15-4A play at the Raider Dome.

Three L-E players scored in double figures and five scored eight or more points. The Leopards finished shooting 38 percent from the field on 29-of-77 shots.

Liberty-Eylau (2-1 district) held a slim 51-49 advantage in rebounding but had just seven turnovers, compared to 31 by the Lady Hawks (0-3 district).

Pleasant Grove shot 27 percent on 15-of-55 field goals.

Bryana Block led all scorers with 27 points. Jamiya Montgomery scored 15 for the Leopards and also had six blocks and six rebounds, and Myah Hurd contributed 11 rebounds and 14 points. Ja’Niya Sanders pulled down a team-leading 13 rebounds and also scored eight points, matched by Kayla Crabtree, who also had eight boards.

Kenasia Henry led the Hawks with 13 points, and Autumn Crouch scored 10. Reese Gibbs had 13 rebounds, and Audi Koller added eight boards.

Holding a 53-29 lead through three periods, Liberty-Eylau outscored Pleasant Grove, 20-11 in the final stanza.

Defenses controlled the pace of the game for much of the first half.

The Hawks gained a modest 5-2 lead early, and after a 4-point swing by Liberty-Eylau, PG held another advantage at 7-6 with 3:36 left in the first quarter.

The Leopards scored the next seven points, started by Bryana Block’s 3-pointer. Reese Gibbs had a putback for the Hawks in the final minute to bring the score to 13-9 at the first break.

Myah Hurd converted a traditional 3-point play for Liberty-Eylau midway through the second quarter, and Block’s layup gave the Leopards a 10-point lead (22-12).

Kenasia Henry buried her first of two 3-pointers to spark a 5-point run by Pleasant Grove, and after her second, which cut the lead to 24-20, Jamyia Montgomery hit a trey for L-E to make it 27-20 with 30 seconds left.

Jazz Moses scored for the Hawks on a short jumper with eight ticks left to send the teams into the locker room with Liberty-Eylau ahead 27-22.

The Leopards shot just 30 percent (11-of-27) from the field in the first half, and PG shot 32 percent (9-of-28).

Pleasant Grove won the junior varsity game, 42-27.