Rattlers withstand Rough Riders’ rally
Martinez’s 3-pointer stops 13-2 run, seals 6-0 start in 27-6A
The best lessons are the ones that aren’t costly.
Reagan coach Selena Winbush delivered one late in the Rattlers’ District 27-6A showdown against Roosevelt on Wednesday afternoon at Littleton Gym.
With the Rough Riders staging a furious fourth-quarter rally, Winbush called timeout and implored her young team to work through it. Then, she drew up a play that swung things back the Rattlers’ way.
Coming out of the timeout, Reagan senior guard Juliett Martinez squared up at the top of the arc and sank a 3-pointer that helped the No. 2 Rattlers secure a 56-47 victory.
“I think it was a big moment because they had momentum at that point, and so I was trying to swing the momentum back our way. Basketball is a game of runs, and they were making a run and we were kind of stagnant.”
Reagan improved to 19-7 overall and took sole possession of the district lead at 6-0. The unranked Rough Riders dropped to 17-7 and
5-1.
“We were letting them shoot when we were supposed to be rotating,” Martinez said. “They got those shots, and they got on fire. We had to step up on our defense.”
The Rattlers took their biggest lead, 46-27, when freshman Samantha Wagner sank a 3-pointer in the first minute of the fourth quarter.
The Rough Riders answered with a 13-2 run that cut the Rattlers' lead to 48-40 with 3:58 remaining. Roosevelt sank three treys, including two from Kemara Hyson. But, the basket that forced Winbush to call timeout was when Hyson finished a layup off a steal.
“We knew that was going to happen that they were going to come back and hit some threes because they are a good team,” Wagner said. “With us playing our game and not letting them get on too big of a run and playing together, we knew we could withstand that.”
The fact the Rattlers worked through adversity represented maturity for a young team. Reagan may have folded a month or two ago with they faced stateranked opponents.
“The best thing is we experienced these things in the preseason at all these tournaments,” Winbush said. “We had experienced (adversity) some and we came up short because we succumbed to the pressure, or we fell back. So, we're growing in all these moments.
Wagner led the Rattlers with 16 points. Martinez and sophomore Christeen Iwuala each had 13. Martinez sank four 3-pointers, and Iwuala had 12 rebounds.
Hyson led all scorers with 21 points. Mariela Taylor added 12.
Wagner, who is committed to Baylor, had to work for her points early. The Rough Riders faceguarded her with Taylor. Reagan created shots for her with pickand-rolls and screens. Eventually, things opened up.
“I've had that before, a little bit, but not that much,” Wagner said. “It's definitely a struggle being face-guarded the whole game.
When other girls got open it caused her to back off so that I could get off shots.”
The lead changed three times before the Rattlers finished the first quarter with a 7-2 run that gave them the lead, 14-10.
Reagan never trailed again, although the Rough Riders cut the lead to 14-13 following a 3-pointer from Taylor. The Rattlers outscored the Rough Riders, 18-12, in the second quarter.
Reagan carried a 43-27 lead into the fourth quarter. Wagner opened the fourth with her trey before Roosevelt made its charge.
Barring a monumental collapse, the Rattlers are ensured of a securing their first winning season since 2015-16. The Rattlers have gone 32-59 since then.
“This was really important because this is the first time we've been 6-0 (in district) in a while,” Martinez said.