Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, March 12, 1991 TAG: 9103120246
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-5 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: M.J. DOUGHERTY CORRESPONDENT
DATELINE: DUBLIN LENGTH: Medium
The Lady Cougars (23-2) captured Roanoke Valley District and Northwestern Region titles with tenacious defense. They hope to be successful in their first chance at state play by doing the same.
"We've got to play like we've been playing," said guard Becky Smith, Pulaski County's only senior. "We've got to play together. . . . And [for us], the three most important factors in basketball are defense, rebounding and intensity."
The Cougars will get a chance to put that strategy to work Wednesday night at 7 at William and Mary Hall in Williamsburg. They meet Central Region runner-up Petersburg (22-4), in the first round.
Tournament semifinals are Friday. If Pulaski wins, it would play Lee of Springfield or Phoebus at 3:45 p.m. The championship is Saturday at 1 p.m.
Defense has keyed the offense for Pulaski this season. Guard Terri Garland is a case in point: The 5-foot-7 guard leads the squad in steals (4 1/2 per game) and scoring (almost 18 points per game). For those and other contributions, Garland was named Roanoke Valley District player of the year and was on the Northwestern Region's first team.
The starting five combine for 32 rebounds per game. That translates into more chances for the Cougars and fewer opposition shots. Lena Jones leads the team with 11 rebounds per game, while Cindy Martin averages eight. Both were all-district and second-team all-region.
"We've just got to play our basketball," said Martin. "That's running down the floor and working it inside. And I think our mental preparations before the game [are important]. We haven't found a team yet who can stay with us."
Against Petersburg, "playing its basketball" for Pulaski County will include trying to control the tempo and using its transition game for easy baskets. These tactics have been part of the Cougars' success.
"We want to be able to press, and to do that we'll have to score," said district coach of the year Rod Reedy. "It's difficult to press if you don't score. And we want to avoid early foul trouble. That could make us back off a little bit."
Since the Cougars are continuing to focus on doing that at which they've been successful, the team isn't likely to forget what must be done Wednesday.
"We're going to have to play defense," said Kristie Ratcliffe, who averages seven rebounds per game. "We're intense at it. We're just going to have to play hard."
Petersburg went to the state tournament last year and lost in the final round. It returns all five starters from that team. The Crimson Wave is led by Cheryl Taylor, who was named to the all-Central Region team.
Old Pulaski High captured the unclassified state girls' basketball title in 1926.
by CNB