North Pike head girls’ basketball coach Lance Golmon had seen enough.
For the first two quarters Tuesday night, Golmon stood by as his Lady Jaguars tried going around and shooting over Columbia’s pressure zone defense. At halftime, he took action.
Golmon instructed his players to be more aggressive and challenge the middle of the Lady Wildcats’ defense.
The result was a 49-point second half by North Pike in its 79-56 victory over Columbia in a foul-laden marathon at North Pike.
The two teams combined for 51 team fouls, including 30 called on Columbia. The game took two hours, eight minutes to complete.
North Pike (9-5 overall, 2-0 in District 7-4A) won its third straight and remained atop the district standings. It will host Lawrence County at 6 p.m. Friday with at least a share of the district lead on the line. Lawrence County also stands at 2-0 in region play.
“Wow!” Golmon said after North Pike pulled away in the second half after leading 30-19 at halftime. “Overall, we handled their pressure very well.
“I told (the players) at halftime that if we attacked the middle, that would leave someone open. The whole second half, we attacked the basket.”
The first half offered few offensive sparks for either team. While North Pike shot just 26 percent (8-for-31) from the floor in the first half, Columbia sank an abysmal 22 percent (8-for-37) from the field.
While it didn’t get any better for Columbia in the second half, North Pike hit four of its first five shots in the third quarter. Shanika Turner’s pass from the right wing led to Maraya Quin’s left baseline running layup and a 39-25 Lady Jaguars’ lead.
Turner also took an opportunity to hit from the perimeter. The senior guard appeared to reset the offense at the top of the key, but instead hit a three-pointer when she found herself unguarded. The basket pushed North Pike’s lead to 48-31. North Pike led 50-37 after three periods. Turner scored 14 points on the night.
The Lady Jaguars saved their best offensive work for the fourth quarter. Following a Columbia offensive foul, senior shooting guard Olivia Kennedy split the Columbia defense to drop in a runner and extend the margin to 58-42.
Kennedy also did plenty of work in transition. She slipped a hand between the ankles of a Columbia player for a steal, then went the distance for a layup to make it 67-43 with 3:04 to play. Kennedy finished with a team-high 19 points.
Sophomore post player Precious Jefferson continued the assault on the Columbia basket. She fielded a pass from senior guard Chelsey Causey and went through the lane for a layup and a 72-52 advantage.
