Wildcats cling to late victory
SANTA FE — In a welcome departure from some recent efforts, Santa Fe didn’t have to go to the final possession in Tuesday’s District 10-A matchup with visiting Richland.
Coming off a last-second victory Friday at Mt. Pleasant, and a two-point loss to the Raiders earlier this month in Lynnville, the Wildcats rode a strong start Tuesday to a 69-59 win.
The absence of late-game heroics, though, didn’t leave the contest without its suspense. After building a 10-point first-quarter cushion and a 12-point bulge in the third period, the hosts found themselves hanging on to a tenuous 47-44 lead 30 seconds into the final quarter.
That was as close as it got, though, as Santa Fe’s balanced offensive attack took turns scoring — converting 11 of 15 free throws over the final 2:32 — and holding Richland at bay down the stretch.
“The way we started,” Wildcats coach Brad Slaughter said in identifying the key to his team reversing a 54-52 outcome on Jan. 10. “And they did some things down there designed specifically to take Andy (Slaughter) out. We practiced for that. It worked well. And we played the best defense we’ve played, for four quarters.”
The younger Slaughter was less of a ballhandler in Tuesday’s contest for Santa Fe (11-7, 4-2), making it tougher for Richland to isolate him defensively.
“We were moving a lot, setting a lot of off-ball screens, getting good shots,” he said after finishing with a team-high 18 points to lead four double-digit scorers.
Slaughter’s first basket, a 3-pointer at the 2:09 mark of the opening quarter, gave the Wildcats an 11-1 lead before the Raiders finally managed their first field goal on their next possession. And while Richland (12-8, 3-2) battled back, the visitors never led.
“It starts with being tough and competing,” Brad Slaughter said. “We’ve gotten a lead (in the past) and been comfortable with that lead, played to the scoreboard. I think we’re doing a better job of competing every possession. We’ve got a young group, but I feel we’re figuring out how to win.”
Colton Steward added 14 points for Santa Fe, Jeremy Dotson 13 and Logan Wilkins 10. Logan Helton scored a game-high 21 points for Richland, with Daniel Nicholson scoring 19 and Montel Bobbitt 10.
Lady Wildcats earn stunner: Playing without coach Jonathon Slaughter (flu), Santa Fe’s girls avenged a 42-point road loss earlier in the month by defeating Richland 53-46 Tuesday.
“This really changes the way we think about the rest of these district games,” forward Emmy Bates said after scoring a game-high 20 points to lead the way for the Lady Wildcats (6-12, 4-2). “We’ve gone into some games hoping to win, but now we know we can beat these teams.”
Richland (11-10, 3-2) took a 42-35 lead early in the fourth period before Bates converted a baseline drive from the right corner to spark a 12-1 Santa Fe run.
“I saw the drive was there,” she said. “It’s kind of out of my comfort zone, but I felt I needed to take it.”
Bates scored eight of her 20 points in the final 6:45, with Elise Adkison adding 17 points in the win.
“Having Elise definitely helped us,” Bates said regarding Adkison, who missed the 66-24 loss at Richland with an ankle injury. “She’s our best defensive player. I feel that was a big factor.
“We were more focused. We started going harder in practice, working on everything harder. We knew (Slaughter) was sick and we wanted to get this win for him.”
Kenley DePriest coached the team in Slaughter’s absence.
Katie Garner, Jesse Jennings and Kristen Garner each scored 11 points for Richland.
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Santa Fe girls 53, Richland 46
R 12 13 12 9 — 46
S 14 9 17 13 — 53
Richland (46) — Katie Garner 11, Jesse Jennings 11, Kristen Garner 11, Allie Garner 7, Halle Braden 2, Marti Hood 4
Santa Fe (53) — Aniston Slaughter 7, Elise Adkison 17, Gracie Mills 2, Emmy Bates 20, Laci Warf 5, Ally Warf 2
3-pointers — Richland 3 (Ka. Garner 3), Santa Fe 4 (Slaughter, Bates, L. Warf)
Santa Fe boys 69, Richland 59
R 5 16 21 17 — 59
S 12 15 20 22 — 69
Richland (59) — Tyrell Randolph 2, Logan Helton 21, Montel Bobbitt 10, Daniel Nicholson 19, Trey Luna 4, Brennon Angus 1, Jackson Alsup 2
Santa Fe (69) — Logan Wilkins 10, Sammy Caudle 8, Colton Steward 14, Jeremy Dotson 13, Andy Slaughter 18, Will Monhollen 6
3-pointers — Richland 3 (Helton 3), Santa Fe 3 (Dotson 2, Slaughter)