Sandy's Spiel Showcase
The Lanier Longhorns picked up their fourth straight win and extended their current win streak to six in a row after they defeated the Woodstock Wolverines to kick off the annual Sandy's Spiel Showcase. The Longhorns were led by Michelle Ezumuh who finished with 22 points and Jordan Johnson adding 13 points for the Longhorns.
"I think we're a second half team and in the second half, our defense turns up and these last six games, it's been resilience," Lanier head coach, Jose Cardy said of how his team has played to help them reach their current 6-1 mark. "They're playing hard on defense and playing as a collective group," Cardy said of the Longhorns.
The second matchup of the Sandy's Spiel Showcase featured the Tri Cities Bulldogs, entered the day coming off a loss to Carrollton on Friday night, taking on the Greater Atlanta Christian Spartans, entered the day looking to secure their third straight win, however the Bulldogs would open up on 7-2 run in the first quarter and close out the period with a 15-6 lead.
As the game continued, despite efforts by the Spartans, the Bulldogs would never relinquish the lead and would go on to pick up the 50-43 win. "It was very important to see what we could do against a bigger team," Tri Cities head coach, Nikia Grooms, said following the Bulldogs win, praising her players for their efforts in the quick turnaround of back to back games.
"The girls showed a lot of heart. We had to play through a lot of adversity today and we came out victorious in the end so I'm proud of them," Grooms said of the Bulldogs, who were led by Janiah Murray with 22 points.
Hawks-Naismith Holiday Classic
At the annual Hawks-Naismith Holiday Classic, the final girls matchup featured the Langston Hughes Panthers taking on the McEachern Indians as the Panthers looked to earn their fifth straight win against a McEachern team looking to bounce back from a Friday night loss to Hillgrove.
As the game got underway, the Panthers found themselves having to play from behind throughout majority of the game until late in the fourth quarter when a Safari Underdue lay up would tie the game 39-39 followed by a Underdue lay up off an inbounds play, which would give the Panthers a 41-39 lead in route to 43-39 win.
"They'll fight," Langston Hughes head coach, Xavier Trice said as he praised the Panthers for their efforts to battle back and pick up Saturday's win, despite trailing most of the game. "That's what you want to see, especially early in the season. Will they fight and will they compete," Trice said. The Panthers were lead by Karrell Greene, who finished with 14 points.