ALLSTAR GIRLS BASKETBALL: West squad blown out in All-Star girls game
Posted on Thursday, June 26, 2008
URL: http://www.nwanews.com/wrvn/Sports/4053/
Charles Berry knew the East All-Stars were faster and more athletic, but he was surprised that his West squad struggled so mightily from the floor.
But they did, and the West All-Stars fell 72-46 at Bud Walton Arena in the Arkansas High School Coaches Association All-Star girls basketball game on Thursday.
The West seemed to find a stroke early, showing some promise on the offensive end. Berry’s former Huntsville star, JoBeth Williams, hit the game’s first shot for the West.
“ And then we got away from what we were wanting to do, ” Berry explained.
The East went on a 22-3 run in a stretch which bore witness to nine consecutive missed baskets by the West, which finished the night shooting 31. 6 percent from the field.
The game was divided into five periods, with three, 7-minute periods making up the first half. The West connected on just 21. 2 percent of its shots in the first 21 minutes as the East hit 46. 2 percent.
“ We thought we’d shoot a lot better than we played, ” Berry said. “... They had a lot more quickness than we had. We weren’t very quick, but we thought we could get the ball inside a little bit better than we did.
“ They just gave us a thrashing. ”
The East’s Chelsea Sublett scored 8 points in the first half, connecting on 3-of-4 shots from the floor. Meanwhile, no player from the West team scored more than 4 points in the first 21 minutes.
The game marked Berry’s fourth chance to lead the West All-Stars on the bench and seventh overall as a head or assistant coach. The victor of the All-Star game has never been the most important aspect of All-Star Week, Berry said.
“ I hope [I get invited back ] sometime, ” Berry said. “ We did have a great week, had a good relationship with the coaching staff and also with the players. Everything went good.
“ I couldn’t tell you who won this game two years ago anyway. ”
The East built a 25-point, 40-15, lead in the third period after a Whiquitta Tobar bucket with 5: 23 remaining in the half.
The West managed to get within 52-31 after a Brittney Stout 3-pointer with 2: 56 remaining in the fourth period, but the East regained control and ballooned the lead to 59-34 to end the period.
Kimberly Sutterfield hit a 3- pointer to extend the lead to 70-40 with 1: 52 remaining in the game.
Carlisle guard Julie Inman, who will play for the Lady’Backs next season, scored 4 points on her future collegiate home court in her final high school game.
“ It was a lot of fun, ” Inman said. “ We had a shootaround yesterday, but getting to play tonight in front of the fans was a lot of fun. ”
Cheree Freeman, who tied Sublett with 10 points for the East, was named the game’s MVP. Sublett took home the East’s most outstanding player trophy.
Van Buren’s Erin Gatling won the West’s most outstanding player award after a 3-of-10 shooting performance and 6 points.