Hiwassee Dam – Hiwassee Dam girls basketball players knew effort would be the key Friday against Copper Basin, Tenn.
When the Lady Eagles and Lady Cougars first met in Copperhill on Dec. 5, the two teams were tied at 32 in the third quarter before Copper Basin pulled away for a 72-42 win. This time, head coach David Payne wanted his team to continue to fight and battle through adversity, leaving everything on the floor.
There was plenty to fight through, with Copper Basin being a physical team and the typical ebbs and flows of a gamer. But the Lady Eagles never wavered, and in a tight contest made the plays they needed down the stretch to come away with a 68-59 win.
“Our girls came back and were ready to give a good effort,” Payne said. “They felt like they learned the system, and what we’re trying to do. Our girls played hard tonight. They really got after it, and they didn’t give up.”
The previous meeting was just Hiwassee Dam’s fourth game of the season, and the Lady Eagles (9-7 overall) were a bit behind the eight ball compared to other teams. Payne was brought in as a coach two weeks after Hiwassee Dam was allowed to start practicing, so they didn’t have as much time to learn a new system. Learning how Payne wanted them to play, along with better effort, made the difference.
Copper Basin (10-7) led 13-6 early on thanks to some easy runouts and good looks at the basket, but the Lady Eagles cleaned up their transition defense and were able to hit eight of 10 free throws to tie the game at 17 at the end of the frame. They continued to battle in the second quarter, despite some sloppy execution at times, and trailed 31-28 at halftime.
The Lady Cougars did a good job denying looks to Olivia McNabb in the high post, and at times Hiwassee Dam was forcing her the ball instead of making a smart pass. It didn’t help that the Lady Eagles only hit two 3-pointers in the first half, allowing Copper Basin to pack the paint. But Hiwassee Dam first three field goals in the second half were all triples, allowing for better offensive flow.
“Sometimes we were rushing passes a lot and trying to just beat them,” McNabb said. “Once we calmed down and got good set ups it helped our game a lot better.”
Two free throws from Katie McNabb put Hiwassee Dam in front 39-33, though Copper Basin answered with an 8-0 run. From there, neither team led by more than four points until Katie McNabb’s three pushed Hiwassee Dam’s lead to five with 2:18 remaining in the fourth quarter.
In between, it was a physical game on both ends of the floor. Lady Eagles starters Payton McNabb and Brinkley Payne both missed time in the fourth quarter due to hitting their heads hard on the floor, though reserves Brooklyn Hyde and Sky Taylor both made some key plays.
Hyde banked in a 3-pointer to start the fourth quarter and put Hiwassee Dam in front 50-49 and, after Olivia McNabb’s layup gave the Lady Eagles a 52-51 lead, Taylor’s layup pushed the lead out to three. Hiwassee Dam never trailed after McNabb’s layup, but couldn’t exhale until the final seconds.
Contributions came from plenty of players down the stretch. Both Olivia and Katie McNabb had timely buckets, while Kiera Taylor had a key steal that led to Payne being fouled and hitting two free throws for a 63-58 lead with 1:24 left. Payne would put the game out of reach with a steal and layup for a 66-59 lead in the final seconds.
Before every game, Olivia McNabb said David Payne tells them five keys to the game, with effort always being one. That won’t always mean a win, but Friday night showed what can happen for the Lady Eagles if that effort all goes in the right direction.
“That’s what I told them in the locker room,” Payne said. “When we get everybody working hard on a given night for 32 minutes, I’ll take our chances.”