Girls BB: Judges 77 Colonels 36

Special to The Winchester Star

Winchester — “Young, talented and in shape” is the way Marvin Scott described his Handley girls’ basketball team after Friday night’s home game against James Wood.

The Judges sure proved it, dominating from the opening tip in a 77-36 Northwestern District victory.

“We are a running team, and we have to be able to get out there and do that,” Scott said. “Tonight we were, and we were able to make them play our game. And because of that, we were able to win.”

Handley (6-4, 3-1 Northwestern) came out on fire in the first quarter, making 9 of 17 shots and holding the Colonels to only five points, all of which came from the free throw line. Wood (3-8, 2-2) didn’t convert on any of its 16 field goal attempts, which led to a 19-5 deficit at the end of the period.

“We didn’t drive to the basket in the first quarter,” James Wood coach Rhonda Slider said. “If you don’t drive to the basket, you’re not going to get those easy shots. We were not cutting, and the result of that was that we did not execute and make any baskets in the quarter.”

The onslaught continued, as Handley sophomore Corin Scott scored 10 points in the second quarter. The Judges outscored the Colonels 25-12 in that period to go up 44-17 at the half.

“We are a lot more confident than we were when we played Millbrook,” said Corin Scott, who finished with 20 points. “I think that loss against Millbrook [last Saturday] helped us to focus more, and that is why we are playing better now.”

The Judges’ stiff defense continued in the third quarter, when their pressure helped extend the lead to 38.

“The defense was very good tonight,” Marvin Scott said. “Especially the play of Kameron [Scott] and [Verna] Hilaire-Lee. They were able to keep the pressure up, creating a lot of steals, and Kameron was able to limit the looks that [Heather] Armel had at the basket, making it difficult for her to get open jumpers.”

Armel scored a team-high 15 points for the Colonels, who got a game-high nine rebounds from Shannon Thorne.

Handley point guard Erin Drumheller led all scorers with 23 points. Curtis added 11, and Corin Scott led the Judges with seven rebounds.

“I think we have clicked more as a team these past couple of games,” Drumheller said. “We are sharing the ball more, getting open looks and taking advantage of those looks.”