Okoro sisters lead Lady Demons in win over Great Bend
By Shelton Burch
Sports Editor
The Lady Demons fell far behind in the first, trailing by as much as seven nearly when they fell behind 8-1 before cutting the 8-3 at the end of the first.
“We’re young, so when the first couple don’t fall we get in panic-mode, we try to force the issue or we overthink it,” Lady Demon head coach Kelley Snodgrass said. “You just gotta let it come and trust that it’s gonna go in,you know,play with some confidence.”
In the second, things got better for the Lady Demons who used a 9-2 run to take a lead,holdingontolead14-12. It was a low-shooting first half for both teams however.
“We just reassured‘em that it’s gonna fall, you gotta go inside out,” Snodgrass said. “I thought Chidera (Okoro) got some good ones inside.”
The Lady Demons shot just 12 percent, hitting 3 of 25 shots in the first half, including going 0-9 from deep. Great Bend didn’t shoot much better, hitting 3 of 9 shots from the field for a 15.8 percent shooting percentage through the first two quarters.
In the third quarter however, the Lady Demons came out shooting. They started the quarter on a 10-0 run, later pushing their lead to as much as 12 when they led 31-19. Great Bend went on a 5-0 run to end the third, but still trailed 31-24 at the end of three.
Both teams shot significantly better in the third. Dodge City shot 50 percent from the field and hit 3 of 4 from deep, while Great Bend shot 31.3 percent from the field.
“We finished strong,” Snodgrass said. “I thought we were more patient offensively. We were strong with the ball. Defensively I think it was definitely did it. We sealed it with
the rebounds, Ezinne (Okoro) came up huge in the zone and rebounding-wise and we stepped up and made free throws toward the end.”
Great Bend senior Carley Brack and Dodge City sophomore Chidera Okoro tied for a game-high14points. Chidera shot 6 of 8 from the field and 2 of 2 from the free-throwline.
Both Okoro sisters have been forces under the basket this season, and Friday night’s game was yet another double-digit scoring effort by the younger of the two.
“I’ve been practicing really hard on my shots and being more versatile on the court, and I think it’s finally paying off,” Chidera Okoro said.
It was the fourth game back for Ezinne after a five-game injury hiatus. The combination of the two Okoro sisters was as pronounced in Friday’s game as it may have been yet this season, with both working in tandem and getting each other’s misses at various points.
Chidera had seven rebounds,but it was her sister who shined brightest of all on the glass. Ezinne Okoro had a game-high 13 rebounds, and also had a game-high six steals, more than any other two players in the game combined.
Having her back in the lineup feels good, Chidera Okoro said.
“It’s like another me,so it’s like another great rebounder and she just does a lot on the court too,” Chidera Okoro said.
On the boys side, the Red Demons jumped out to a lead early.Though there were four lead changes in the first quarter, the Red Demons led 22-12 after a 12-2 run at the end of it.
They led 31-26 at halftime but were outscored 14-6 in the second quarter.
Things didn’t get better in the third quarter. The Panthers opened it on a 13-0 run that gave them the lead early with the score 34-31. Great Bend outscored Dodge City 23-10 in the third quarter. That lead change in the third quarter was the last one in the game, as the Red Demons fell to Great Bend 70-60 Friday night.
Great Bend’s Peyton Duvall and Dodge City junior Noah Sowers tied for a game-high 19 points. Great Bend senior Ty Esfeld had a game-high 15 rebounds. For Dodge City, sophomore John Johnson and senior Kaden Riekenberg tied for a team-high five rebounds.
Red Demon Senior Luke Gleason had a game-high six assists.
The Red Demons are next in action Tuesday when they head to Hays to take on the Hays Indians in their last road game of the regular season.
