Defense, depth lift BHS to decisive wins vs. HVA to begin District 4-4A
Bearden defense limits Lady Hawks
KNOXVILLE — Smothering defense against an experienced and proven Hardin Valley Academy line-up left Bearden girls basketball head coach Justin Underwood quite pleased.
His Lady Bulldogs remained undefeated (8-0 starting the week) while grabbing its first District 4-4A victory of the season after a decisive 62-24 victory at BHS Friday night, Dec. 6.
“I was really pleased with our defense ... I can’t say enough about how well we played on that end of the floor tonight,” Underwood said. “I thought we came out of the gate and were flying all over the floor.
“Our rotations were fantastic,” he added.
As for scoring, standout junior point guard Natalya Hodge led the way with a game-high 21. Junior guard Emma Rainey added nine points while senior wing Kendall Anne Murphy scored eight and senior forward Aisha Patel ended with seven.
“I think defensively we played really well,” Patel said. “We rebounded the heck out of the ball; we did great on that. Offensively, we moved it really well.”
“I think our performance tonight is not going to define us for the rest of our season,” HVA head coach Jennifer Galloway said.
The Lady Hawks (4-3 overall, 0-1 in district) were led by senior forward Bella Buccola’s seven points.
“I thought we had some good play off the bench from Bella Buccola,” Galloway said. “She came in and gave us a lift.”
Senior wing Ava Claire Wrather added six points for the Lady Hawks.
