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SM blasts Cherokee for season's first win
Cetera DeGraffenreid contributed 21 points, 10 assists, seven rebounds and seven steals leading Smoky Mountain to a 74-33 non-conference basketball victory Nov. 23 at Cherokee.
Kristine Webb added 16 points to go with seven rebounds and four blocks for the Lady Mustangs. Ameka Buchanan netted 11 points.
The Lady Braves were led by Charmin Welch with 13 points and Tiffany Panther with 10.
Leslie Mathis was Smoky Mountain's leading rebounder with eight in last week's 74-33 romp past Cherokee. – Herald photo by Carey Phillips
"I was pleased with our intensity," Coach Cindi Simmons said. "Cherokee had some quickness, and we handled that well. We were pleased to play as well as we did coming off a disappointing loss."
She noted SM's two games have been on the road at tough places to play with trips to Mountain Heritage and Cherokee.
The Lady Mustangs took the lead for good on Leslie Mathis' basket with 6:29 to go in the first period. That started a 15-2 run, including seven by DeGraffenreid and six by Webb, for a 19-6 lead with 1:45 on the clock. The margin was 22-8 at the quarter break.
SM scored the second stanza's first 12 points, including five by Mathis, for a 34-8 advantage on Buchanan's three-point play with 5:43 to play in the half.
The Lady Mustangs led 42-18 at intermission.
DeGraffenreid and Buchanan both had six in a run of 14 straight points for a 56-22 lead with 2:42 to go in the third quarter.
Cherokee closed the period with nine straight points, including four by Welch, cutting the gap to 56-31.
The Lady Braves were limited to two points in the fourth quarter.
Meanwhile 13 unanswered points, including six by Webb and four by Kelli Woodard, pushed the lead to 69-31 with 2:37 on the clock.
The final accounted for the game's largest margin.
DeGraffenreid made eight field goals and five free throws. Webb scored all her points from the floor. Buchanan hit five field goals and a foul shot.
Mathis finished with seven points, Woodard followed with six, Ashley Coggins netted five, Amy Haggard scored four, Brandi Anders had three and Sky Kanott made a foul shot.
The Lady Mustangs shot 40 percent from the floor.
"Cetera made some great passes and kept Cherokee off balance with her defense," Simmons said. "Kristine was a force inside offensively, defensively and on the boards. Ameka gave us some inside scoring, and Kelli came off the bench to give us a lift. Leslie's hustle helped her lead the team in rebounding."
Cherokee's JVs rallied for a 44-30 win as SM was hampered by 30 turnovers. The score was 6-6 after the first quarter with the Lady Mustangs leading 21-18 at halftime but trailing 34-26 through three periods.
Colleen Davis and Chelsea Schultz both scored seven points.
"We had a great first half, but we couldn't finish," Coach Kim Hardy said. "They seemed to get tired and started making sloppy passes."
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