South Florida Sun-Sentinel (Sunday)
Palm Beach Lakes rolls to victory
WEST PALM BEACH – Palm Beach Lakes notched a statement victory over another top local team on Saturday. The Rams blew out Palm Beach Gardens 73-37 in West Palm Beach, putting them in prime position to end the regular season strongly and prepare for the playoffs.
“It was a good game for the county, and it was Senior Night for us, and they’re all childhood friends — they grew up in the neighborhood together — so it was just something that we needed going into the playoffs,” Lakes coach Cassandra Rahming said. “A good last regular-season home game. And then we have two more games next week, tough games on the road against Boca and Lincoln Park.”
Lakes (18-2) got great production out of the two seniors they honored, Ra’Shara Simmons and Brittany Wilcox.
Wilcox led the Rams Palm Beach Lakes seniors Ra'Shara Siimmons, left, and Brittany Wilcox led the Rams to a blowout win Saturday.
with 20 points with junior Sh’Naya Anderson scoring
16 points. Simmons notched
12, including nine in the second half., and junior Keishmy Ayuso added 12 points.
“The sky’s the limit [for the seniors],” Rahming said. “Ra’Shara’s going to play, no matter what. And Brittany is just an outstanding player. She’s a great role player that knows when it's her time to step up and do what she has to do. So I’m going to miss them tremendously, but they did exactly what they’re supposed to do, and they went out here with a win.”
Lakes’ high-pressure defense forced Gardens into mistakes, and the Rams notched 11 steals.
“Our defense triggers our offense,” Rahming said. “As you can see, we’re not big at all. So we just rely on our speed and quickness to be our advantage.”
The Rams had the lead from the game’s first basket, but they broke the game open in the third quarter, outscoring the Gators 23-4 in the third quarter. To make things worse for Gardens (17-4), star senior Kiera Brown, a UCF signee, exited the game with an injury in the third quarter.
The rout continued in the fourth quarter, as the Rams scored 21 more points to secure the big victory.
“It definitely sets the tone for everybody in Palm Beach County,” Wilcox said, “to let them know we’re really on top.”