GIRLS PREP BASKETBALL: Tri Cities Prep 39, WARDEN 34

In a game that saw neither the Warden Lady Cougars or the Tri

Cities Prep Jaguars take any serious control in the end it game

down to one dry spell and multiple missed opportunities.

In a game that saw neither the Warden Lady Cougars or the Tri Cities Prep Jaguars take any serious control in the end it game down to one dry spell and multiple missed opportunities.

A 10-0 run mid-way through the second half was enough for Tri Cities Prep to hold off the Lady Cougars 39-34 in the first semifinal of the Moses Lake Christian Academy Christmas Tournament yesterday afternoon.

Warden (2-5) take on Bridgeport today at 3 p.m. in the consolation game while the Jaguars battle the host and defending champion Lady Lions at 6 p.m.

"We were pretty rusty coming off the break," Warden head coach Todd Kisler said. "I thought we could have done a better job moving our feet on defense and boxing out."

Early on both teams seemed to need to shake off their Christmas dinners and their gift for giving.

Warden committed six turnovers while Tri-Cities Prep had approximately the same amount as they battled to a 10-10 tie after the first eight minutes.

The Lady Cougars didn't help their cause giving up numerous multiple shot possessions due to poor defensive rebounding.

"We were just standing there jumping with them and not putting a body on them and boxing out," Kisler said. "We were lucky it was that close of a game for us."

Cole scored six of her points during that time period to keep her team close.

No team could get any type of run going as Warden held the biggest lead of the first half when Cole's drive led to a Chelsea Brown lay-up and a 19-16 edge.

The Jaguars would cut the gap to 19-18 at intermission.

Warden had 15 turnovers in the first half while shooting 26 percent from the field.

After halftime the game kept its same ebb and flow but the Jaguars did force matters with a full court press which induced more Warden turnovers.

Still when Iris Rodriguez powered through the lane for a layup, Warden had its biggest lead at 25-20 with 4:15 left in the third quarter.

Over the next three minutes Warden went cold and behind a mix of missed chippies and turnovers allowed the Jaguars to creep back and take the lead at 26-25.

It could have been a lot worse for the Lady Cougars who had seven turnovers in the quarter while hitting only 3-of-17 shots.

"We were only down by one and so I felt we were still in the game despite it," Kisler said. "We just needed to make a few stops and start making a few baskets."

After starting the fourth quarter with four turnovers and two missed free throws in their first five possessions, Warden allowed the Jaguars to build a 30-25 lead with just over five minutes left.

Finally the Lady Cougars' offense kicked in to gear.

Hannah Bisnett scored on two interior shots on consecutive possessions and Rodriguez added a scoring drive to cut the gap to 32-31 with 3:53 left in the game.

"We were boxing out then and giving them one shot and done and our posts were working hard," Kisler said. "I told them after the time out we had to start our run and start theirs. It was the best basketball we've played as a team during that span."

Both teams went hungry offensively for nearly two minutes despite solid opportunities to score before the Jaguars scored on a mid-range jumper with 2:03 left at a 34-31 advantage.

Warden turned it over on the following possession, but followed with a defensive stop to keep their hopes alive.

Bisnett split two free throws at 1:34 to make it 34-32 but the Jaguars countered with one of their own to bump the gap back to 35-32 moments later.

Brown scored on a follow up with 1:13 remaining and Warden was within one.

A solid defensive stand fell short as the Jaguars' Alex Cuevas hit a 12-foot jumper with only a few seconds left on the shot clock and Tri-Cities Prep was back up 37-34 with 37 seconds left.

"It was killer when you play defense for 28 seconds and give up an open shot at the shot clock buzzer," Kisler said. "It takes the pride out of your defense. All we needed was two seconds to get it done."

Cole and Brown both missed jumpers to cut the gap to one and Bisnett missed the front end of a one-and-one and the Lady Cougars would fall short.

Bisnett led Warden with 11 points, while Cole finished with eight points, and Rodriguez contributed seven points.

Rodriguez also added 15 rebounds while Brown 10 boards for Warden.

"We took some big steps since we hadn't played in a tight ballgame all year," Kisler said. "We learned some key things even if we didn't accomplish all of them. You can practice them but until you are actually in them it makes a difference. I hate to lose but it was a good loss for us to take the next step."