Gallery by Karen Akers
The importance of the first regular season battle between sectional rivals PikeView and Shady Spring Tuesday evening could not be overstated.
With postseason play less than a month away, a win would give the victor a leg-up in the all-important quest for home-court advantage.
Powered by 27 points from all-stater Hannah Perdue and a solid supporting cast, the Panthers took a home a 67-60 win on the road.
“Coming back from the loss (last year) in the sectional championship, we had the mindset that we were going to get that trophy back. Shady is a great team, but we came out tonight wanting to play our game and we did that,” Perdue said. “The whole team played great and our post players really stepped up. We made some adjustments yesterday at practice and everybody played really good tonight.”
After putting her team through the rigors of a brutal schedule early in the season to prepare for games like Tuesday night, PikeView head coach Tracy Raban wasn’t sure what to expect, especially after a setback Saturday.
“It has been a challenge for us. We had a really tough practice yesterday as far as a team meeting and just trying to get back on track. This was only our second game since Jan. 5. We didn’t get to play or practice due to some Covid cases and quarantines,” Raban explained. “I thought we came out flat Saturday against Summers County. I really challenged our group to start trusting each other and communicate on the floor. I thought they stepped up to that challenge tonight.”
Out of the gate, things did not look good for PikeView.
Shady Spring started quick and took a 15-5 lead when Kierra Richmond drilled a deep straightaway 3-pointer, forcing Raban to get a quick timeout.
“I thought we came out with too much emotion and intensity, maybe overthinking some. I told them they just needed to settle down and take it one possession at a time,” Raban said. “There wasn’t a 10-point possession, so we just needed to keep chipping away at the lead.”
Trailing by eight after the first quarter, the Panthers bought into Raban’s words and came roaring back.
A strong move inside by Hannah Harden was followed by a 3-point play from Anyah Brown. After making the first of two free-throws, Riley Meadows ran down her miss and found Brown for another score.
Two free throws from Brown capped a 10-0 run and PikeView never trailed again in the contest.
The Panthers’ play in the paint, keyed by Brown, Meadows and Brooke Craft, was the difference in the game.
“I think we get underestimated because everyone thinks we only have Perdue. Don’t get me wrong, she is a heckuva ball player and she really showed that tonight,” Raban said. ” But I felt like we were patient tonight and found the girls down low. They stepped up tonight and did what they needed to do.”
Add in some missed assignments by the Tigers and when the halftime horn sounded, PikeView held a 31-26 lead.
“Overall our effort was great, but we just have to work on the rebounding,” Shady Spring head coach Brandon Bennett said. “They are a big team and a strong team that does well on the boards. We knew that coming in. We missed some defensive assignments and that really hurt us in the second quarter. The separation happened in the second quarter because of the missed assignments.”
The visitors pushed the lead to 11 in the third quarter before five consecutive points from Braylie Wiseman trimmed the deficit back to six points after three quarters.
The lead quickly went back to 10 when Perdue scored off a steal and then found Craft for a layup inside.
Richmond answered with back-to-back long ball including a step-back 3 that created a huge eruption from the home crowd.
However, PikeView never wavered. Two buckets from Craft and a floater from Brown restored the 10-point lead.
The Tigers cut the lead back to five points late, but Perdue sealed the game with two free-throws in the final seconds.
The two free-throws gave Perdue 1,000 points for her career.
“It’s special. I wouldn’t have been able to do it without my team, my family, everyone supporting me and God giving me the ability to do it,” Perdue said.
Brown finished with 11, while Craft had 10 and Meadows scored nine for the Panthers.
Richmond led all scorers for Shady with 29 and Kellie Adkins added 11. Wiseman and Brooklyn Gibson scored nine points apiece.
“I saw two good basketball teams tonight. At the end of the day, they out-rebounded us and that is what hurt us,” Bennett said. “That was really our Achilles heel tonight. If we rebound the basketball, we win the game. That is what we have to do a better job of.”
Shady Spring travels to Nicholas County Wednesday. PikeView visits Class AA No. 2 Wyoming East Friday.
PV: 11 20 14 22 – 67
SS: 19 7 13 21 – 60
PikeView (5-5)
Hannah Harden 6, Brooke Craft 10, Cat Farmer 4, Hannah Perdue 27, Anyah Brown 11, Riley Meadows 9. Totals: 23 19-26 67.
Shady Spring (7-4)
Kierra Richmond 29, Brooklyn Gibson 9, Kellie Adkins 11, Kylee Barnes 2, Braylie Wiseman 9. Totals: 19 15-24 60.
3-pointers – PV: 2 (Perdue, Meadows); SS 5 (Richmond 5).