Game Report: LR Central vs Cabot (1/17)

Preview   The Little Rock Central Lady Tigers traveled up I-57 to take on the Cabot Lady Panthers last night. Cabot was looking for just their second conference win, while Central was looking to remain undefeated in the 6A central.   Despite the Tigers winning the 2024 6A state championship last season, Cabot was the better team in the regular season. They were 25-5 in 2023/24, with an 8-2 conference record. Despite that, they fell in the semifinals. The Panthers graduated much of their talent last May, so Cabot is looking to organize a rebuild of their basketball program.   The Panthers were entering last night's matchup with an 8-11 overall record, while the Tigers were looking to win their fourth straight game, hoping to extend their overall record to 14-4. Considering Cabot defeated Central the two times they met up last season, the first meeting of the year between these two squads was going to be very intriguing.   Recap   The Tigers opened up the game on a 4-0 run, courtesy of Cabot turnovers. Throughout the night, Central's transition offense was the driving force of the game, and that is where most of their points came from. Their fastbreak play separated themselves from the Panthers in that first quarter, along with their stifling full-court press. Cabot continued making mistakes with that press, and on the few times that they broke through, they could not find open looks. The first quarter ended with Central ahead 15-7.   In the second period, Central was finding more offense from their senior forward, Taylor Day-Davis. Cabot could not handle her around the basket, and she was scoring and getting to the foul line whenever she wanted to. The Tigers pulled ahead with a 27-12 lead at the half, but their offense would slow down a bit in the third quarter.   Central's defense was still outstanding in the second half. Even though Cabot had their best quarter of the night with 9 points, those baskets were all hard-earned. The Tigers had gone cold in the quarter, missing open looks in the paint and not capitalizing at the line. The Panthers actually outscored them 9-8 in the period, but that tiny victory for the home squad would not matter in the end.   After having their worst quarter of the evening, Central would go on to have their best quarter, scoring 19 points. Cold-streaks were snapped and different players emerged to help put the game away. And of course, that defense was still suffocating, only allowing 3 points from the Panthers. The Tigers would walk away with the 54-24 victory in enemy territory, earning their third consecutive victory in conference play.   Key Performances from Little Rock Central Players    [player_tooltip player_id='465505' first='Ky' last='Wilson'] led the way for the Tigers, especially in the second half. She had 13 points, but she did a lot of damage on the defensive end as well.   Wilson finished the game with 4 steals and 1 block, along with multiple deflections. She was extremely active throughout the game, and even when everyone was starting to wear down, Wilson was still providing energy and effort. She stole passes and turned them into transition points, and she picked pockets.   In addition to those other stats, Wilson posted 4 rebounds and 3 assists. She made sure to get her teammates involved in the game, and 2 of her rebounds were on the offensive end.   [player_tooltip player_id='465505' first='Ky' last='Wilson'] is a leader for this Tiger team, and Central fans are pretty much used to this type of production from the senior.     Taylor Day-Davis had that strong first half, and even though she was one of the players who went cold in the third quarter, she bounced out of it and made a tremendous impact for her team.   Day-Davis scored 11 points to go along with 9 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 steals. The senior never seizes to play the right way for the Tigers. The officials were letting both teams play, so most of Day-Davis' shot attempts were heavily contested and she was usually being hacked every time she went up.   Day-Davis is a very consistent offensive player, but her performances on the glass are even more consistent. She uses her 5'10" athletic frame to leap to the glass, and she is just stronger than everyone else on the floor.   Taylor Day-Davis showed that she can break out of a shooting slump mid-game, but even if the shots are not falling, she can still have a large impact for her team.     [player_tooltip player_id='467464' first='Chloey-Rei' last='Brown'] was coming off a productive game against Bryant on Tuesday, and she followed that game up with another solid performance.   Brown posted 8 points, 1 rebound, 2 assists, and 4 steals. All 8 points came on the fastbreak, including her made mid-range shot. 2 field goals came from her steals, and she was disruptive all night long.   As soon as a pass hung in the air too long or the opposition was handling the ball too high, Brown was on top of it, racing down the court for transition points. Though Central struggled to shoot at times, she still facilitated the ball well.   [player_tooltip player_id='467464' first='Chloey-Rei' last='Brown'] is one of the best pure floor generals in the conference. She knows how to direct an offense, and every college needs a player who can facilitate the way she can.    [player_tooltip player_id='1183222' first='Rosebella' last='Onyango']- The sophomore big has had plenty of strong performances this season. Against the Panthers, Onyango put up 6 points, 7 rebounds, and 1 block. She was always ready for a pass down low. Once she received a pass, she would use her strength and length to shoot over the defense. She also crashed the offensive boards, pulling down 4 second-chance rebounds.   [player_tooltip player_id='1183234' first='Alexis' last='Bradford']- Bradford is more of an offensive-minded forward for the Lady Tigers, but last night, she made plays all over the court. The senior only had 3 points, which was off a catch-and-shoot 3-pointer, but she pulled down 3 rebounds, recorded 1 assist, forced 2 steals, and blocked 1 shot. The Cabot victory was the best performance we have seen from the 5'11" forward so far this season, at least in conference play. If she continues to play like that, Central's depth will look even more favorable, especially late in the season.   Key Performances from Cabot Players    Cabot's playmakers struggled all night long, which included [player_tooltip player_id='1060894' first='Kaylin' last='Bean']. It was clear that Central's gameplan was to keep Bean from scoring, and she never had anything easy. Despite that, she still found ways to contribute.   Bean finished with 5 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists, and 1 block. She was the primary inbounder, racking up a couple of assists off quick inbound plays. Considering she was keyed in on as a scorer, Bean had to become more of a playmaker, making nice passes and distributing to her teammates whenever she could.   Bean led the team in rebounds. She was very active on the glass, looking to push the pace once she had possession. The few times she had an opportunity to score, she displayed a lot of skill. Her first field goal was off a great spin move to get around her defender inside. Her other field goal was a contested step-back mid-range jumper, which ended up being nothing but net.   [player_tooltip player_id='1060894' first='Kaylin' last='Bean'] is Cabot's most talented player, but she needed help.    [player_tooltip player_id='1180576' first='Jayda' last='Cook']- Cook is a freshman starter for the Lady Panthers, and though she was not very impactful on the scoreboard, she made plays in other areas. Cook's defense was outstanding. She had 3 steals to go along with 5 rebounds. Cook did have 4 fouls late in the game, but in that first half, whoever she was guarding had a difficult time trying to find a clean shot.   Review   Cabot falls to 8-12 on the year, dipping below .500 in conference with a 1-2 6A central record. For Central, they win their fourth game in a row, as well as their third consecutive conference victory.   The Panthers will have to scrape and claw their way to the 6A state playoffs, and play even harder if they want to advance in the tournament. They will have arguably the most difficult part of their conference schedule coming up, as they hit the road to play Bryant, North Little Rock, and Jonesboro in three straight away games.   For the Tigers, they will have the hardest test of the season so far as they host the top team in the state, the Conway Lady Wampus Cats. This will be a game that will show everyone if Central has what it takes to go back-to-back.

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