Basketball: No. 1 Dwyer girls hold off No. 2 Lake Worth

Wednesday, January 16, 2013
by Matt Porter

Top-ranked Dwyer has plenty of playing and coaching experience, and with it, a deep arsenal of offensive and defensive sets.

One play it usually doesn't need to run: hold the ball at the end of a game.

That's what second-ranked Lake Worth made Dwyer do Wednesday night. Unbeaten and on its home floor, the Trojans made Dwyer (17-4) sweat out a 75-69 win.

"I've seen them play everybody. They just smash people," Lake Worth coach Alvin Hamilton said. "We knew if we come and do the little things that we do well, we can play with them."

Lake Worth (16-1) may have suffered its first loss of the season, but just barely. Thanks to skilled junior forward Storm Bureau (game-high 21 points, seven rebounds, seven assists) and sophomore guard Jonika Garvin (19 points, eight rebounds, six steals), plus some sweet outside shooting (eight threes), the Trojans forced a deep Dwyer team to use a short rotation of six.

"I think we came out with a lot of fight," Bureau said. "A little more practice and we might have had it."

Lake Worth forced more turnovers (23-21), but Dwyer hit the boards harder. It outrebounded Lake Worth 28-25, including a whopping 18-4 on the offensive glass.

"Those big girls were just too big for us," Hamilton said.

Five Dwyer players scored in double figures, led by Keyanna Harris (team-high 16 points, seven assists, six steals) and Kai James (12 points, 11 rebounds). Ayanna Holmes had 15, with Glodis and Mykeria Lee chipping in 13.

After going up 10-3 to open the game, Lake Worth led by one at the end of the first quarter. Dwyer went up by 10 at the half. While Lake Worth went on a 7-0 run to start the third, Dwyer never led by less than four points in the fourth quarter, and pushed its lead to as many as 11.

"They're a quality team," Dwyer coach Jeryl Akins said of Lake Worth. "Their guards played very well. They have the shooters. And they didn't need much room. We had to work tonight."

Cardinal Newman 56, Glades Central 27: Samantha Poje scored 24 points and Tytionia Adderly added 18 points and a school-record 30 rebounds as the Crusaders (10-8) routed the Raiders in Belle Glade.

Seminole Ridge 31, Village Academy 26: Jessica Cody scored 19 points and grabbed 10 rebounds as the Hawks (12-10) stopped the Tigers in Delray Beach.

Lincoln Park Academy 80, Jensen Beach 54: Brandy Montgomery scored 37 points as the Greyhounds (15-3) handled the Falcons (14-6) Fort Pierce.

BOYS

Cardinal Newman 57, Dwyer 56: Andrew Owers had 11 points and 14 rebounds to help the Crusaders (10-6) edge the Panthers in West Palm Beach.

American Heritage 75, Trinity Christian 27: A.J. Garson scored 20 points and Cameron Reynolds added 16 as the Stallions rolled over the Warriors (1-15) in Lake Worth.

Jensen Beach 76, Fort Pierce Westwood 50: Jean Alexis scored 23 points, and Shawn Blake added all 12 of his points in the fourth quarter to lead the Falcons (12-6) to the rout of the Panthers in Jensen Beach.