If there was one thing South Pike coach Janice Felder was worried about heading into Thursday night’s District 7-4A semifinal against rival North Pike, it was forward Precious Jefferson.
Jefferson became Felder’s worst nightmare, as the senior forward scored 24 points, grabbed 10 rebounds and had five steals in North Pike’s 61-47 win at South Pike.
“The key (coming in) was keeping Precious off the boards and we didn’t do that,” Felder said. “She had a field day. When they shot and missed, she was there to put it in.”
Jefferson’s teammates weren’t too bad, either.
Nicole Jefferson had 10 points, 13 rebounds and five steals and Kaylan Hughes had nine points and 11 rebounds.
North Pike’s defense was stingy the entire game, holding South Pike to 32 percent shooting while forcing 23 turnovers.
North Pike coach Lance Golmon switched Hughes and guard Adrianna Patterson in their full court press, moving the lengthier Hughes to the front and the quicker Patterson toward the back.
“The height was a dominant factor and we couldn’t get past their press,” Felder said. “They pressed us and we couldn’t handle it. Some of it was unforced but we have to get passed that.”
The Lady Eagles could never find a rhythm and scored just 17 points in the first half (7 of 29 from the field).
“We tried to take the three main guards out of the way,” Golmon said. “When we lost last Friday night (to Lawrence County), that kind of got to us so they knew the only way they could play Lawrence County again was to beat South Pike.”
North Pike held junior guard Akayla Powell scoreless on 0 of 6 shooting. The 5-foot-2 speedster was brilliant in a Jan. 17 win over North Pike when she scored 20 points.
Forward Jamaya Carter had a productive 15 points and nine rebounds for South Pike while Milesha McNulty had four points and 13 boards.
Meanwhile, it was all Precious Jefferson from the tip. She scored 10 points in the first quarter and finished the game a sparkling 11 of 17 from the field.
“She cleans up pretty well,” Golmon said. “... That’s one thing with her, she’s determined if she misses a shot.”
North Pike advances to tonight’s championship game against No. 1 seed Lawrence County and are guaranteed a home playoff game when the 4A South State tournament tips off Monday.
Lawrence County clinched a spot in the finals Thursday with a 77-70 win over Columbia. Brittany McDuffey led Lawrence County with 26 points and Taylor Brister chipped in with 18.
Radejga Woodson led Columbia with 29 points and Kim Lee added 20.
North Pike and Lawrence County split the regular season series 1-1. The Lady Jags notched a 62-61 win Jan. 13 at home and lost last Friday at Lawrence County, 69-65. The win gave the Lady Cougars the regular season district title.
