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The Dupo Lady Tigers Varsity basketball team hosted the Roxana Lady Shells in their regular season finale Thursday evening, losing 45-31. It was not only the Lady Tigers last regular season game but also their last home game. And as tradition holds the Lady Tigers’ senior players were honored on ‘Senior Night’ as Kim Chappelear, Margaret Davenport and Chelsea Scott were recognized with their parents prior to the start of the game.
The Tigers and Shells appeared to be evenly matched with neither team having a distinct height advantage although the Shells did appear to have a deeper bench than the Tigers. The Lady Shells came into the contest with a 3-19 record while the Lady Tigers held a 4-15 record. So both teams were looking forward to the opportunity to notch a win before Regionals next week.
Both teams made their fair share of mistakes early but as the game progressed it became clear that Roxana was sharper in the fundamental aspects of the game while Dupo was dependent on their athleticism. But as Dupo fell into the familiar pattern of turning the ball over Roxana took advantage. The Lady Shells were able to do what the Lady Tigers were not, they took care of the ball, played decent defense and did a good job of rebounding. Even so, the Lady Tigers found some offense in spurts and were able to keep themselves in the game as Roxana led 19-12 at halftime. Dupo Lady Tigers Coach Jill Puckett said, “We kept the game close but obviously not close enough. I’ll give Roxana credit, they are quick. Our girls were wore out after having played them. But we bounced back after having a really bad game at Affton last night.”
Both teams had ball-handling problems to begin the third quarter as there was a lot of movement up and down the court but little scoring. The Lady Tigers were committing a lot of fouls but were fortunate in that the Lady Shells were having difficulty converting at the free throw line, hitting only 5 of 22 from the free throw line. But Dupo was having their own problems scoring in the third quarter. The Lady Tigers had a number of fast break opportunities and open looks at the basket but failed to score. The Lady Shells found their offense late in the third quarter and used the opportunity to pull away from the Lady Tigers outscoring them 14-5 in the third quarter and take a commanding 33-17 lead.
The Lady Tigers did not lie down though. They came back in the fourth quarter, increased the tempo of their offense and went to a full court press defensively to try and create turnovers and offensive opportunities. The strategy worked at times for the Lady Tigers but it wasn’t enough. The Lady Tigers had their best quarter of the game scoring 14 points but they were unable to shut down the Lady Shells who found holes in the full court press and got easy points scoring 12 points of their own to maintain their lead and win 45-31. Coach Puckett said, “I told the girls that tonight was our best effort we’ve had in a while. We took some shots that just didn’t fall for us tonight and you can’t win if you don’t score.”
When asked about her three seniors Kim Chappelear, Margaret Davenport and Chelsea Scott Coach Puckett replied. “Unlike some other athletes in our program these girls stuck it out. They have the kind of leadership that isn’t always immediately seen. Margaret leads in that she always possesses a positive attitude. Chelsea leads through her hustle, she always gives 100% no matter what the situation. Kim leads through her natural instinct to help others on the team especially underclassmen. They’re not loud leaders like some in the past, they lead by example. They’ll be missed.”
The Lady Tigers were led by Kylie Hoffstetter and Kaitlyn Donald with 8 points each. They were followed by Margaret Davenport with 5 points, Taylor Bauchman, Kim Chappelear and Chelsea Scott with 3 points each and Kelsey Ragsdale with 1 point. The loss dropped the Lady Tigers to 4-16 while the Lady Shells improved to 4-19. The Lady Tigers open Class 1A Regional play at Bunker Hill next Monday as they face Mt Olive at 7:30 p.m.
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