Monday February 28, 2022: Women's Basketball

Baton Rouge, LA

The Baton Rouge Lady Bears squared off against the East Central Lady Warriors tonight, in the second round, of the Region XXIII tournament. On a night when the Lady Bears shots were not falling as often as they would like they would rely on their defense to lead them to a 52-41, round two tournament victory over the East Central Lady Warriors.

In the first quarter, after the game was tied at 2 with 7:46; the Lady Bears would go on a 12- 4 run to open an eight-point lead;14-6. East Central would rally to close within six, at the end of the first quarter.  At the end of the first quarter, the Lady Bears led 18 to 12.

In the second quarter, the Lady Warriors would open on a 6-0 run to tie the game at 18 with 5:46 remaining. East Central was more aggressive on the defensive end, limiting the Lady Bears second chance points and capitalizing on their turnovers.  The game would be tied at 20 with 5 minutes remaining.  The Lady Bears would find a bit of offense to close out the quarter on an 8 to 2 run to take a 28-22 lead into halftime.  Both teams scored 10 points in the quarter.

In the third quarter, the Lady Bears turned the tables a bit and were more aggressive on the defensively end, limiting East Central to single possession each time down the floor. They also forced some turnovers which lead to transition buckets and sparked the Lady Bears offense.  The Lady Bears outscored the Lady Warriors 18 to 7, in the third quarter, to take a 17-point lead into the fourth quarter;46-29.

In the fourth quarter, the Lady Bears withstood a Lady Warriors rally to secure the 52 to 41 victory. The Lady Bears were outscored 12 to 6, in the fourth quarter.

The Lady Bears will travel to Summit, Mississippi on Tuesday March 1 to take on the Southwest Mississippi Lady Bears in the Region XXII tournament.  If Baton Rouge wins, they will face the winner of the Pearl River/Itawamba game in the semifinals on March 3 at Mississippi College.