Bits & Pieces by Don Eskins
Being dominated and down by 11 points, 40-29, with just 3:37 remaining in the ball game, isn’t the kind of spot any basketball team wants to be in. That’s especially true if you’re on the road.
But that’s exactly the scenario the Carlsbad Cavegirls were facing on Friday night, December 20, against a very tough Artesia Lady Bulldogs in Big Orange Country.
However, there was 3:37 left, and the Cavegirls were destined to make the best of it.
“During our time outs, we really didn’t have to do anything to get our kids fired up. They always play hard, and as their coaches, we know we’ll always get their best effort,” said Cavegirl head coach Matt Enloe. “ But we did make a few adjustments at the 3:37 mark of the fourth quarter. We moved Abbey around and opened things up a bit to get off a few more shots. Lucky for us, we were able to make good on them.”
Turning up the heat with a torrid pressing defensive effort, CHS rallied to outscore the Bulldogs, who had been in control of the game from the beginning, 16-5, down the stretch to tie the game up at 45-45 as the buzzer sounded to end regulation play in the fourth and final quarter.
En route to the Cavegirl’s big finish, they got points from Jasmynn Gonzales, two; Maci Garcia, three; Hayden Brose, four; and Abbey Dugan, seven.
While all the shots that rolled in for CHS were big, none was bigger than Dugan’s buzzer-beater.
With four ticks remaining on the clock, trailing 45-43, and the game on the line, the Cavegirl senior guard scooped the ball up at mid-court and drove the lane to put up a floater good for two points, a 45-45 tie, and to send the game into overtime.
“We didn’t expect Artesia to go back down the floor and set up a 2-3. But our kids were heads up on it and rolled the ball in,” said Enloe. “Abbey picked it up at mid-court and then did an Abbey thing to even up the score at 45-45 as the buzzer sounded, ending regulation play.
“With time running out and the pressure on, I’m not sure how many kids in the state could have made that shot,” he said. “But Abbey’s a baller, has ice in her veins, is clutch down the stretch, and at her best when we need her the most, as she was against the Bulldogs.”
CHS went on to outdistance the Dogs 13-4 in overtime to grab the 58-49 victory, their eighth win of the year versus two losses. Dugan led all CHS scorers with 18 points.As big as Dugan’s effort was, it wasn’t the only Cavegirl performance to turn a few heads. Senior guard Maci Garcia hit five threes for 15 points. Three of those threes came during CHS’s big fourth quarter and another in overtime.
Dropping in threes has been part of the Cavegirl’s offense that has been lacking at times this season. But, thanks to Garcia, that wasn’t the case against the Bulldogs.
“Maci’s five three-pointers were huge for us. We need someone to step up and hit shots from the outside every night if we’re to win. This time, it was Maci who stepped up,” said the Cavegirl head coach. “We could tell during our time outs that she was focused and logged in with her shot. She scored 15 points, and we needed every one of them.”Rounding out CHS’s scoring, along with Dugan’s 18 and Garcia’s 15, were Jasmynn Gonzales and Becca Brown, each with nine, Hayden Brose with four, Kendra Ortega with two, and Cameron Zumbrun with one. Also dropping in threes for CHS were Dugan and Gonzales.
This week, MaxPreps ranked the Cavegirls 13th among other New Mexico Class 5A schools.
Cavegirls @ Artesia
C-girls 05-08-09-23--13---58
Dogs 09-12-09-15--04---49
Game Stats: A. Dugan 18, M. Garcia 15, J. Gonzales 9, B. Brown 9, H. Brose 4, K. Ortega 2, and C. Zumbrun 1: FT’s 11-17-65%; 13x2’s; 7x3’s.
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