by Malcolm Butler
Cedar Creek sophomore Alivia Lee had been sick all week.
However, on Thursday night, Lee turned the tables and made No. 7 seed Hamilton Christian feel pretty ill.
Lee scored a career-high 22 points to help lead the Lady Cougars to a 47-28 win over the Lady Warriors at The Brickhouse.
With the victory, Creek (28-3) advances to the program’s fifth trip to the state semifinals as the Lady Cougars will head to Hammond next week to face No. 3 seed JS Clark Academy.
However, in order to get there, Creek had to beat a young, but very athletic and talented Hamilton Christian squad from Lake Charles.
And Lee turned out to be the key, especially on the offensive end of the floor.
“She took it to the rim,” said head coach Katie Hall. “She was playing good defense. She gave her all. She hasn’t been feeling good for the entire week. She got an IV yesterday, and I think that helped a ton. She got her color back. She is a tough kid. I am glad she is on my team.”
Lee scored eight points in the opening quarter and her three-pointer with 1:02 to play in the opening stanza gave the Lady Cougars an 11-8 lead, an advantage they would never relinquish.
“I just knew I had a lot to prove,” said Lee. “This is a big win. I needed to step up. It was important (to make some shots early). Not just for me, but for our team. It gets us rolling. Seeing shots go in lifts all of our confidence.”
Lee then opened the second quarter where she left off, converting a conventional three-point play less than 40 seconds into the frame. A driving layup by Lee midway through the second quarter gave Creek a 21-12 advantage.
“(Alivia) did so good,” said junior forward Avery Ryan. “It really helped because I couldn’t get the ball. I know I can trust her with everything.”
And trust her they did.
While Lee was scoring 13 of Cedar Creek’s 23 first half points, the Lady Cougars defense clamped down on the Lady Warriors (14-10), holding them to the second lowest point total all season.
After Hamilton Christian converted some opportunities in transition in the opening five minutes of the game, the Lady Cougars switched to a half-court man defense and forced their opponent out of its comfort zone.
“They were ready for the press,” said Hall. “I still wanted to try it because it’s what we do. I felt really confident in our halfcourt defense. We have been working on it all week. That is what was working for us. We stuck with it.
“We had their personnel broken down and we knew their tendencies. We did a good job of keeping them out of their rhythm offensively.”
A big part of that defensive equation was Ryan, who battled inside all night with Hamilton Christian’s Madison Williams, holding her to only four points in the game.
Although Ryan only netted six points herself, her presence inside and on the glass was integral in the victory.
“(Williams) was my height, and I knew if she was my height that I could push her,” said Ryan. “She is strong, but I was stronger. I just wanted to play her straight up and not foul. I knew that’s what I needed to do.”
Hall agreed.
“(Avery) just alters so many shots,” said Hall. “She bothers people with her presence. Her tenacity to go get a rebound is like no other. She is fun to watch when she gets in that mode.”
With Creek leading 23-16 at the half, the Lady Cougars outscored the Lady Warriors 16-10 in the third quarter to push the advantage to 39-26.
HC scored the first bucket of the third quarter to close to within 23-18, but Mallory Smith drained a three-pointer with 6:20 to play and then Lee scored five straight points over a 30 second timeframe late in the third quarter.
Any chance of a fourth quarter comeback by the Lady Warriors was doused when starting points guard Kayla Harding fouled out early in the frame. Without Harding to run the show, Hamilton Christian scored just two points over the final eight minutes of action.
In addition to Lee’s 22, Mary Grace Hawkins added eight points and Ryan scored six.
Creek will await the date and time of their semifinal match-up against JS Clark Academy (24-8), a 64-36 winner over No. 11 seed Ascension Catholic. The Lady Cougars will put their 16-game winning streak on the line.
“It means everything (to be heading to Hammond),” said Lee. “It’s what we have worked all summer for and all year for. Just to see our hard work pay off means everything.”
“This is the farthest I have ever made it in the playoffs,” said Ryan. “It’s amazing. It doesn’t feel real.”
The other Select School Division IV semifinal match-up will feature No. 1 seed Southern Lab vs. No. 5 seed OCS.
