Friday, January 29, 2016

Mamou remains undefeated in district with a win against DeQuincy

Mamou remains undefeated in district with a win against DeQuincy
Coming into the game Friday, Mamou was riding a six game winning streak. A week ago the Demons beat Lake Arthur on the road 70-56 and beat Kinder 78-70 Tuesday night to get to 5-0 in district. Both the win streak and the district record increased by one after beating DeQuincy at home 66-48.
"We came out I thought with a high energy, but we did some things that kinda let them back into the ballgame," said coach John Jack. "I told my guys we can't afford to just let people back in the games and make it interesting. I think that's what we did tonight."
Mamou took the lead on a trey from Trey Wilson to go up 4-2. Great team ball movement resulted in LilPaul Williams sinking a three ball extending the lead to 9-4. Wilson then made a basket from under the net to go up 11-4. A timeout was called on the court at the 3:40 mark of the first quarter as Mamou led 13-6.
Russell Edwards stole the ball and passed to Williams who dunked it in for the score. Wilson then hit another trey from the far end of the key to go up 18-6 before Williamson hit a three of his own. DeQuincy converted on a three point play to bring their score column into the double digits and hit a three to close the gap to 23-16 as the first quarter clock ran out.
Edwards extended the lead to 25-16 early in the second. DeQuincy cut it back to a single digit lead about half way through the quarter. Luke Thomas made it a double digit game again at 33-23.The first 16 minutes of play ended with the home team leading 37-23
Mamou starting making unforced errors which led to DeQuincy again making it a single digit game at 38-29 as a timeout was called with 5:47 left in the third quarter. Wilson passed to Williamson who picked up a slam dunk to again make it a double digit lead about five and a half minutes into the third quarter.
Williamson drained another big three as Mamou looked to regain control of the game. Edwards rejected a Dequincy play like he was in a Just for Men commercial making Keith Hernandez and Clyde Frazier say, "No play for Mr. Gray."
On the other side of the court, Mamou scored to make it 49-34 in the waning seconds of the quarter, and the third quarter ended by the same score. Mack Thomas hit a three ball to go up by 18, and Cordell Frank made it a 20 point lead at 56-36. DeQuincy mounted a fourth quarter charge, but Williamson stole the ball out of the hands of a DeQuincy player and dribbled all the way for an easy alley-oop to get the partisan crowd more into the game.
This Mamou team now looks to surpass the district record of the 1985-86 team that went 11-1 in district play. To do so it has to navigate through a tough road stretch next week against Welsh and Vinton. Jack said, "Those two teams are playing tonight, and depending on what happens with it next week is a very big week for us."

Tuesday, January 19, 2016

Mamou makes the Lady Lions sheepish

Vinton roared into Mamou for a Super Tuesday matchup in district play. Mamou controlled the flow of the game from the opening tip and went on to make the Lady Lions look sheepish. The Lady Demons won 69-30 and improved to 4-0 in district and 17-8 overall.
Mark Temple stressed defense in practice coming off his team's last outing against Welsh. He said he focused on "adjusting, communicating, and playing good defense." He continued, "And also we plugged in another defense that's pretty much a half court scramble in traffic and forced turnovers and get easy baskets in transition."
The Vinton head coach sang the praises of this Mamou team after the game. "They do a great job," said said Wendel Lejeune. "Coach Temple does a super job. The girls play hard. They're athletic. They shot the ball really well. (Darelzray Bellard), (Kiajah Wilson), and (Arkie Thomas) were just outstanding in the first half against us. And they're good kids. They're good sportsmen. We enjoy playing them... They scored off of their little press and their little fast break and everything. But, yea, it's a pleasure playing against a team that's coached that well and plays that hard for the coach.
Wilson scored the first basket on the night and failed to convert on the three point play. Thomas then lobbed the ball from one end of the court to the other over to Bellard for two points putting her team up 11-2 at the 3:44 mark of the first quarter. Wilson in the shadow of her own net later stole the ball away and scored as a timeout was called. Mamou led 17-9 with 1:27 before the 2nd quarter. With her toes on the arc, she made another basket to go up by 10. The first quarter expired with the home team up 25-9. Bellard in the second quarter launched a three ball to go up 28-9. Mamou maintained a 20-point lead for the remainder of the half and went into the locker room up 38-15 on a three ball from Thomas.
Mamou scored on each of its first four possessions to go up 46-15 at the 5:31 mark of the third quarter. Mamou then exercied good team ball control and the possession was capped off with a basket from Thomas to go up 52-15. At the end of 3 complete quarters of play, Mamou led 52-16. Thomas launched another three ball, and Mamou broke the 60-point plateau on a jumper from Tia Gallow.
The next game on the schedule is Friday night in Lake Arthur. "We have a big matchup against Lake Arthur," said Temple. "They are also undefeated in district."
Lejeune previewed Mamou's next game by saying, "And they should have a good game against Lake Arthur."

Friday, January 15, 2016

Sacred Heart wins in double overtime on Trojan Lane

Sacred Heart took on Opelousas Catholic Friday night in a key district game. The Lady Trojans continued to commit venial sins of basketball along with other mental gaffes; however, prompt succor intervened as they went on to win 49-48 in double overtime on Trojan Lane.
"It was a very big win in overtime tonight," said coach Stephanie Fontenot. "We had numerous people foul out, but our girls fought to the end. We had a bunch of young people on the floor at the end, and they stuck with it. And our seniors stepped it up and were leaders."
The seniors the coach alluded to include Kara Aguillard, Gabbie Andrepont, and Mary Margaret Gil. The three echoed the same sentiments of pride and teamwork after the game. "It was a hard fight tonight," commented Aguillard. "We couldn't be more proud what we've accomplished so far! Proud to be a Trojan."
"Nothing but complete teamwork," added Andrepont. "Proud to call these girls family."
"It was a team effort the entire game," added Mary Margaret Gil. "So proud of our team!"
That sense of Trojan Pride spilled over onto the bench. Sydney Shiver, who was out of the game due to illness, went on to say, "Watching from the stands I couldn't be more proud of the team."
Catherine Poche with her team down 4-0 scrored the Trojans' first points on the night, and Gabbie Andrepont tied it up. Kara Aguillard was at the line and made both shots to take the 6-5 lead. OC tied the game with a three ball as the first quarter expired. Sacred Heart ended the quarter with twice as many points than fouls and a tied ballgame at 8-8.
Poche gave her team a 12-8 advantage early in the 2nd quarter. OC made a big three to take a 21-15 lead and started to take advantage of the Sacred Heart mental gaffes. Sacred Heart scored on back-to-back possessions to come back and tie the game at 21 with seconds remaining before the half. The half ended with the home team leading 22-21.
Poche scored to go up 24-22, and a timeout was called on the court with Sacred Heart leading 26-21 at the 4:40 mark of the third quarter. Whitney Tate got the offensive rebound from Andrepont's miss and put it back up for two points to go up 28-21. Erin Fontenot ended an OC run to go up 30-26 seconds before the 3rd quarter ended. Kara Aguillard was at the line and sunk both free throws giving her team a 32-26 lead at the end of three quarters of play.
Andrepont scored early in the fourth quarter to go up 34-26. OC went on another run cutting into the Trojan lead as the score was 34-31. OC was at the line with 3:47 left in regulation and sunk both to make it a one point game as the mental gaffes continued. Aguillard got the offensive rebound and the basket going up 38-33 on the scoreboard with just over two minutes remaining. OC drilled a three on the other side of the court making it a two point game at 40-38 as a timeout was called on the court and with 21.9 seconds on the clock. OC then tied it at 40 sending the game to overtime.
OC made it a one point game with just over a minute left on the clock and answered to tie the game at 45 as a timeout was called on the court with 59.4 left on the clock. Mary Margaret Gil got the offensive rebound and the score, but OC drilled another three to take the 48-47 lead. Tate was credited with the big defensive steal and passed the ball to Andrepont for the easy layup and the one point lead at 49-48 with 0.4 seconds on the clock.
The Lady Trojans found a way to win by overcoming the sins and mental gaffes. The team lived up to the school's motto of "We are one for all and all for Alma Mater" and will be loyal and true to the end of this basketball season.

Friday, January 8, 2016

Mamou basketball against Kinder and Jennings

Fundraising efforts are underway to install air conditioning in the Mamou High School gym to combat those hot summer nights. Project organizer Vivian LaFleur said in a statement, "Our community prides itself on being a community that gives. Let's pull together and make our hometown school better for our children and future Green Demons."
It was not the weather outside but rather the action on the court that was hot on this Friday night in January. The Lady Demons started the action with a tilt against Kinder opening up district play and went on to earn a 69-31 win. "We talked before the game that we're on a mission to win district," said head coach Mark Temple. "We're trying to get the championship that has been eluding us for the past two years."
"The game tonight was predicated on the defensive end and also on moving the ball," continued Temple. "We've been practicing that all week preparing for Kinder and the rest of our opponents. We've been preaching to push the ball ahead and take our turnovers and convert them into points."
Mamou led 3-0 on a shot from Arkie Thomas. She followed it up with another three-pointer on the next possession. Darelzray Thomas put the basketball through the net giving the Lady Demons a 10-0 lead. Kinder cut the lead in half, but Mamou regained control on back-to-back baskets. Mamou closed out the first quarter leading 19-8.
Kamaneisha Wilson scored on an easy layup to extend the lead early in the second quarter. Arkie Thomas drilled a three ball to go up 26-8 at the 6:19 mark of the 2nd, then Tia Gallow scored another three pointer to give Mamou a 30-8 lead. The Lady Demons at this point were firing on all cylinders and closed out the first half leading 42-14.
Wilson started the scoring for Mamou in the second half giving her team a 30-point lead. The point differential remained relatively the same thoughout the third quarter as it ended with Mamou leading 53-26. The home team continued firing on all cylinders to preserve the win and started district play with a 1-0 record.
The Mamou boys kept the heat on the court with a nightcap win against the Jennings Bulldogs by a score of 71-53. "This is a very good basketball team we have," said head coach John Jack. "I've been waiting for them to come back with this kind of potential. This was probably our best performance all year."
Luke Thomas was at the line early to give Mamou a three point lead the old fashioned way. He extended the lead to 8-4 on a jumper. Trey Wilson then dribbled coast to coast for the basket to go up 11-4. Mamou closed out the first quarter leading 15-12
Jennings scored with a three ball to make it a one point game, but Mack Thomas answered with a three of his own giving Mamou a 22-18 lead. JaQuaylen Arvie gave Mamou a 10-point lead halfway through the 2nd quarter. Mack Thomas then scored with his second three ball of the night giving his team a 35-22 lead with about two minutes left before the half. Cordell Frank scored a basket to close out a very physical first half with Mamou leading 39-25.
Mamou starting to score in succession and earned an 18-point advantage with five minutes left in the third quarter. The quarter closed with Mamou leading 55-42. The physicality of the first half carried over into the second, and Mamou continued to play its brand of basketball as it held on for the win.
"I thought our offense was excellent," said Jack. "I thought we played real good defense. We fast breaked for the first time I've seen. I thought we had an overall game plan. I thought we executed well."