No. 10 Borden County gets defensive in knocking No. 11 Jayton girls out of playoffs
WOODROW — When the shots weren't dropping early for the Borden County girls basketball team, it turned to its bread and butter: defense.
The Lady Coyotes used a swarming effort to keep No. 11 Jayton out of rhythm en route to a 47-35 win in their Class 1A area playoff Thursday at Lubbock-Cooper.
No. 10 Borden County (27-8) advances to face the winner between Lorenzo and Klondike in the Region I-1A quarterfinals next week.
The Lady Coyotes allowed 15 second-half points to stretch a three-point halftime lead.
"Our girls really pride themselves on defense," Borden County coach Lindsey Schmidt said. "Tonight the shots weren't falling for us, which kept the game kind of close. I was very proud of our girls in being able to handle (their offense). (Jayton coach Jason Blankenship) does a great job of running a million different sets and keeping you on your toes."
Jayton freshman Hannah Blankenship converted a three-point play with 6:21 in the third quarter to tie the game at 25. The Lady Coyotes countered with a 12-3 run, punctuated by Brette Kaite Behren's 3-pointer at the buzzer.
"Up until that, it was a couple-of-possessions ballgame," Schmidt said. "That really helped us to feel like we could kind of take our time on offense and make them have to come out of that zone (defense) a little bit."
Borden County took 1:22 off the clock on that possession. After scoring the first four points of the final quarter to up the lead to 13, the Lady Coyotes were able to have more long sets. Borden County was patient, which led to good looks underneath the basket to seal the victory.
Sophomore point guard Kenzie White orchestrated the half-court offense and also led the Lady Coyotes with 16 points.
"I always like the ball in my hands," White said. "I don't really pay attention to the stuff surrounding me, the clock, the people screaming. I just do what I've been practicing and just let the ball fly."
Daylee Chisum's three-point play just before halftime brought Jayton (27-7) within 23-20, but the Lady Jays never retook the lead after an early 6-2 edge.
Blankenship was overall pleased with his defense, but it was Borden County's pressure and missed opportunities in the paint that spelled the end of Jayton's season.
"We missed a lot of gimme shots and we turned it over a ton," Blankenship said. "When you give them layup opportunities, that's the other half of their game — shooting 3s and making layups. They did a good job of that. We just couldn't ever get really settled down on the offensive end."
REGION 1-1A AREA PLAYOFF
Borden County 47, Jayton 35
Jayton ... 8 ... 12 ... 8 ... 7 – 35
Borden County .. 11 ... 12 ... 14 ... 10 – 47
JAYTON (27-7) — Daylee Chisum 4, Kamryn Nail 2, Hannah Blankenship 5, Alana Croft 12, Kennedy Gibson 6, Harley Smith 6.
BORDEN COUNTY (27-8) — Brette Kaite Behrens 5, Kenzie White 16, Kambell Schmidt 10, Allison Buchanan 8, Tynslee Horton 4, Callie Edwards 4.
This article originally appeared on Abilene Reporter-News: Borden County beat Jayton in a Class 1A area girls basketball playoff
