Rock Hill girls cruise into second round of state playoffs
Rock Hill’s girls shut out Boiling Springs in the first quarter Tuesday night, setting the tone for a 59-24 blowout in the first round of the 5A basketball playoffs.
The No. 2-ranked Bearcats already had 18 points by the time the visitors finally got on the board, scoring early in the second quarter. A gray-uniformed wave of annoying and oppressive defense had already clapped over Boiling Springs.
“We’ve been trying to get back to that,” said Rock Hill coach Kenny Orr. “I think we kind of been slipping up on defense the last few games. But that’s been a staple of us all year and we took a big initiative to get back to that.”
The result wasn’t a surprise, especially considering Rock Hill entered Tuesday’s contest on a 10-game winning streak, while Boiling Springs had dropped nine of its last 10. The Bulldogs didn’t have a response for Rock Hill’s Rikoya Anderson, who scored 22 points, or for the front line of Bearcat guards that flashed their hands on defense like machetes.
Turning point
The turning point was a completely Rock Hill-dominated first quarter.
Anderson hit a triple 46 seconds into the contest, but the Bearcats didn’t score again for over two minutes, Anderson again hitting from long range to make it 6-0. That 3 set up Rock Hill’s press, which forced a 5-second call before Makenna Thompson drove for a bucket. Orr’s team ramped up the defense and steals led to buckets by Whitney Malone and Anderson, who took a pilfer the length of the floor, scored while drawing a foul and coolly knocked in the free throw for a 13-0 lead that grew to 18 by the end of the period.
“Everybody’s a new season, you want to try and take their soul away early,” Orr said. “Put it out of reach and make it a struggle.”
Critical
Boiling Springs players would be forgiven for seeing Bearcat defenders in their dreams/nightmares this week.
Rock Hill’s players were active, hands flying around, feet sliding and generally harassing the already over-matched underdogs from near Spartanburg. The Bearcats forced 11 turnovers in the first half, scoring 17 of their 30 points off Boiling Springs giveaways to all-but decide the game early and give fans an opportunity to pull out their cell phones and see what else was happening in the world.
“We felt like we could put pressure on them up top,” said Orr, “not let them get into their offensive sets.”
Star contributors
Anderson has been a reliable double-double contributor this season and though she fell short of double-digit rebounds on Tuesday, she was a force early. The powerful junior finished with 22 points and seven rebounds, with 17 of her points coming in the first two quarters.
Tee Ballard chipped in 12 points and Thompson added 11.
On deck
Rock Hill, state semifinalists last season, will host Woodmont, which beat Greenwood 60-43, in the second round of the state playoffs Friday at home.
Box score
Rock Hill 59, Boiling Springs 24
Rock Hill;18;12;16;
Boiling Springs;0;7;6;
Individual scoring: Rock Hill - Rikoya Anderson 22, Abriana Green 2, Tee Ballard 12, Breya Busby 4, Rana Robinson 2, Whitney Malone 3, Canijah Taylor 3. Boiling Springs - Deja Pilgrim 11, Arika Dile 5, Morgan Prioleau 2, Caroline Reese 4, Emily Hartsoe 2.
3-point shooting: Rock Hill 5 (Anderson 3, Thompson 1, Taylor 1); Boiling Springs 1 (Dile)
Foul shooting: Rock Hill 14-26; Boiling Springs 3-8
Team fouls: Rock Hill 17; Boiling Springs 19
Fouled out: Rock Hill N/A; Boiling Springs (Amaya Richardson)
Records: Rock Hill 20-4; Boiling Springs 12-13.
This story was originally published February 14, 2017 at 8:36 PM with the headline "Rock Hill girls cruise into second round of state playoffs."