Senior Night Game Report: LR Central vs LR Southwest (2/25)

Preview   The two teams in the 6A classification out of Little Rock faced off on Tuesday. The Little Rock Central Lady Tigers hosted the Little Rock Southwest Lady Gryphons for their senior night. The Lady Tigers honored 7 seniors, with 5 being a part of the 2023/24 championship team that brought home the first girls basketball title in school history.   The Lady Gryphons were still searching for their first win in conference play, while Central was looking to sweep the season series against their rival.   Recap   Central's offense was running smoothly all throughout the night, starting the game on a 15-0 run. Southwest scored their first points off a buzzer-beating three by Tavaree Patrick to end the first quarter. The Tigers scored 19 points in the second and then went off for 31 in the third. Southwest could not find the bottom of the bucket in the fourth quarter and the game ended in Central's favor with a score of 79-11.   Key Performances from Little Rock Central Players    Once again, [player_tooltip player_id='465505' first='Ky' last='Wilson'] was the leading scorer for Central. She was outstanding in the final home game of her high school career.   Wilson finished the evening with 16 points, 2 rebounds, 3 assists, and 3 steals. 9 points came from beyond the arch and she even opened the game up on an individual 7-0 run.   Southwest could not stop Wilson on her way to the basket. If she was not finishing at the rim, then she was getting to the free throw line and converting the free shots. On defense, the senior was jumping in front of passes and taking them the other way.   [player_tooltip player_id='465505' first='Ky' last='Wilson'] has had a storied 3 seasons in a Tiger jersey. She will go down as one of the all-time great Central players, but she will not be leaving until she can bring home Central's second championship.     [player_tooltip player_id='465535' first='Ameriya' last='Gaston'] also played in her final home game with the Tigers on Tuesday. Like Wilson and all of the other seniors, she played some great basketball against the Gryphons.   Southwest could not keep Gaston off the offensive glass. All 9 of her rebounds were on the offensive end, and she followed that number up with 10 points and 2 steals. Gaston was finishing well through contact inside, as well as converting her free throws at a consistent rate.   Gaston did not record a block on the evening, which is a surprise considering she averages around 2.5 blocks a night, but she contested shots heavily around the rim. There is not a game where Gaston does not make things difficult for the opposition in the paint.   [player_tooltip player_id='465535' first='Ameriya' last='Gaston'] will be very important for the reigning champs as they seek to go back-to-back.    You know what? Every Lady Tiger had a phenomenal night, with every player scoring in their last appearance at home this season. I will recognize the play of everyone on this Tiger team, including the other 5 seniors towards the end.   <a href="https://prepgirlshoops.com/player/rosebella-onyango/">[player_tooltip player_id='1183222' first='Rosebella' last='Onyango']</a>- Central's backup center had a very productive game on the glass and on the defensive end. She only put up 4 points, but she did grab 6 rebounds and block 6 shots. She also added 1 assist and 1 steal to her total. The sophomore was practically sitting and waiting for Southwest to go up for a shot, just so she could send it out of bounds.   <a href="https://prepgirlshoops.com/player/moriah-bates/">[player_tooltip player_id='1183242' first='Moriah' last='Bates']</a>- Though Bates has played sparsely over the course of the season, I think she could find herself in the rotation next year. She has had flashes of tremendous scoring ability and she showed it again on Tuesday. She had 7 points, 1 rebound, and 1 assist. She knocked down a triple when she was left too open, and even had a finger-roll layup that had the perfect rotation on it to spin right up and in.   <a href="https://prepgirlshoops.com/tag/gabrielle-sanders/">[player_tooltip player_id='1060883' first='Gabrielle' last='Sanders']</a>- Sanders had one of her better games of the season against Southwest, finishing with 2 points, 2 rebounds, 3 assists, 4 steals, and 1 block. She truly stuffed the stat sheet. Sanders showed how much of a defensive pest she can be, which gave the fans at Boone Fitzpatrick Fieldhouse a lot to look forward to regarding the playoffs and next season.   Zoe Webb- Webb is a junior guard who has also spent much of her season playing on Central JV squad. When she has made her few appearances this season, she has shown out. Against Southwest, Webb had 5 points, 2 rebounds, and 3 assists. She knocked down 1 3-pointer for her first points of the game off a catch-and-shoot look. She is a reliable outside shooter, which will be important for her as she looks to crack the Tiger rotation next season.   <a href="https://prepgirlshoops.com/player/elyse-williams/">[player_tooltip player_id='884753' first='E'lyse' last='Williams']</a>- The junior guard came off the bench on Tuesday in order for the Tigers to have an all-senior starting five. Despite appearing off the bench for the first time this season, she still found ways to contribute as soon as she stepped on the floor. She logged 4 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, and 3 steals. She clearly had her best play on the defensive end of the floor. Williams also cut to the basket well and all 3 of her rebounds were on the offensive end.   <a href="https://prepgirlshoops.com/tag/alexis-montgomery/">[player_tooltip player_id='1060888' first='Alexis' last='Montgomery']</a>- Central's backup point guard had more impressive minutes against Southwest. She had 4 points, 2 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 steals. She was starting the fastbreak, passing down the court to her teammates in transition, as well as moving without the ball herself.   Angel Flowers- Flowers is another junior who has spent a lot of time on the Tigers' JV team. In what was just her fourth appearance in conference play on varsity, she ended up having her best game. She scored her first points of the season and finished the evening with 2 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist, and 1 steal.   Carlotta Block- The junior center had a productive game against Southwest. She had 2 points, 3 rebounds, and 1 block. 2 of her boards were on the offensive end.   Seniors:   <a href="https://prepgirlshoops.com/player/taylor-day-davis/">Taylor Day-Davis</a>- In addition to [player_tooltip player_id='465505' first='Ky' last='Wilson'] and [player_tooltip player_id='465535' first='Ameriya' last='Gaston'], Day-Davis had a solid outing in that starting lineup. She had 6 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, and 1 block. Though not her best scoring or rebounding game, she found ways to get her fellow seniors involved.   <a href="https://prepgirlshoops.com/tag/alexis-bradford/">[player_tooltip player_id='1183234' first='Alexis' last='Bradford']</a>- The senior got her first start of the season in her final home game of her high school career. She made the most of the opportunity, scoring 6 points, pulling down 2 boards, and recording 1 steal. She was aggressive on the offensive end, scoring most of her points off of drives to the basket. Bradford's 2 rebounds were also on the offensive end.   <a href="https://prepgirlshoops.com/player/chloey-rei-brown/">[player_tooltip player_id='467464' first='Chloey-Rei' last='Brown']</a>- Central's senior floor general made some great plays on the defensive end. She finished with 3 steals in addition to 3 points and 2 rebounds (all on the offensive end). She did not play an abundance of minutes, as she was giving her other senior guards plenty of minutes on the floor. Brown's lone basket was from beyond the arch, which was her first make in conference play. She has a nice release and made it off the catch, so she showed she is capable of taking and making more of those.   Lyndsey McDonald- McDonald is in her first and only season as a Lady Tiger and she has shown flashes of brilliance in limited minutes this season. She is another player who contributes mostly on the JV squad, but she did score 4 points to go along with 1 rebound, 3 assists, and 3 steals. McDonald could not find her rhythm from beyond the arch, which was uncharacteristic of her, but she did give the Southwest ball-handlers plenty of problems along the perimeter.   C'Mya Johnson- The final senior who made an appearance on Tuesday was C'Mya Johnson. She has been productive in limited minutes this season and made some plays on Senior Night. She had 2 points, 2 rebounds, and 1 assist against the Lady Gryphons, scoring her lone basket in transition.   Key Performances from Little Rock Southwest Players    It was a rough game for everyone on this Southwest roster. Central became too much to handle, but it remains obvious that [player_tooltip player_id='1183239' first='D'Ariah' last='Harris'] is extremely talented.   Harris had 4 points, 7 rebounds, 1 steal, and 2 blocks. Her best play was on that defensive end, where she was rotating on help-defense and rejecting shots. She was also crashing the glass hard, showing off her leaping ability whenever she had the chance.   All of her points came from the free throw line, where she did not miss. Though she was not finding much help from her teammates, she was not shy about shooting. She was attacking the basket hard and not hesitating to shoot from the mid-range area.   [player_tooltip player_id='1183239' first='D'Ariah' last='Harris'] has a lot of talent, and she is the main player the opposition must gameplan for. I would still keep an eye out for Southwest's star, as she can break out if she has some help around her.    Review   Little Rock Southwest did not qualify for the postseason, so they are going ahead and thinking about next season. The transfer portal in high school sports is unofficial, yet real. This is just me speculating, but Southwest needs to think about holding down their key assets.   For Little Rock Central, they have one more regular season game before the playoffs. They look to continue their great play as they are set to take on Jonesboro on the road.

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