Comanche wins thriller over Waurika

COMANCHE - Throughout the first three games of the Stephens County Tournament on Monday there was not a single tie or lead change once scoring began. The final game would change all of that in a big way.

The Comanche Lady Indians and Waurika Lady Eagles battled back-and-forth through nine lead changes and nine ties before the Lady Indians got the final push they needed at the end for a hard-fought 50-47 first-round victory.

“It was definitely a game of runs,” said Braydon Robinson, Comanche coach. “We got up a little bit, they battled back and got up six and then we came back. But really, I thought it was two good ball teams playing each other all the way down to the wire.”

Comanche players took turns coming up with big points. Four Lady Indians finished in double figures all within three points of each other. Kylie Roden had a strong first half on offense, Jaylee Roebuck had a strong second half on offense and Kamrey Rendon and Jentry Whaley were balanced throughout. It would be what they needed to advance to the second round. It was the only win for a lower seed (5) over a higher seed (4) on the day.

It was Whaley’s points near the end of the game that proved to be pivotal. With Waurika up 45-42 with less than two minutes left in the game, Whaley hit one of two free throws to cut the lead to  45-43. Roebuck tied the game with a basket on Comanche’s next possession with 1:11 to go and then with 40 seconds left, Whaley scored on a short jumper that would put her team ahead for good. Whaley would then add two free throws to make it a two possession game with 19.3 seconds left. Waurika cut it to 49-47 with seven seconds left on a basket by Charly Sellers, but Roden hit one of two free throws to make it a three-point game with 4.8 seconds left. Waurika’s last-second shot was partially blocked to end the game.

Comanche won the game thanks in large part to its three-point shooting. The Lady Indians knocked down eight three-pointers in the contest compared to one for the Lady Eagles.

“We’ve been shooting the ball pretty well lately,” Robinson said. “They were really trying to cover the three-point line so our high post is wide open. Once we throw it into the high post, the emphasis was getting the high post to suck the defense in and kick it back out to the shooters. I thought at the end we finally settled in, found Jentry in the high post and let her make plays.”

Comanche led 13-9 at the end of the first quarter and the game was tied at 24 at the half. The teams were also tied at the end of the third quarter at 35.

The Lady Indians survived a couple of good performances by Aubree Showalter and Jasmine Henry for the Lady Eagles. Showalter found success driving to the basket and on short range shots while Henry proved hard to stop in the post for Comanche on dump passes to her beneath the basket.

Comanche now gets to take on top-seeded Empire on Thursday at 6:20 p.m.

“I’m excited,” said Robinson. “Empire didn’t have to play their game all four quarters today, so I’ll have to go do my homework on them, but I think it’s a little bit of budding rivalry game between our school and their school. I’m excited because I hope Empire brings out the best in us and I’m excited to see what our best looks like.”

It was also Robinson’s first experience at the Stephens County Tournament, which he enjoyed being a part of.

“It was really neat,” Robinson said. “Most tournaments I go to, after each game, everybody leaves. It seemed like every game we were adding people and everybody was staying. I think it’s a testament to show how important this is to everybody in our area. I think its really cool to be a part of it.”

Comanche now has won four out of its last five games after starting the season 1-9.

Scoring

 Comanche (5-10): Jaylee Roebuck, 13; Kamrey Rendon, 11; Jentry Whaley, 11; Kylie Roden, 10 ; Karsynn Bowles, 3; Ema Parks, 2

Waurika (9-7): Aubree Showalter, 16; Jasmine Henry, 16; Rylee Torrez, 7; Jaci Gholson, 5; Charley Sellers, 2; Niecsa Camarillo, 1