Pleasant Grove girls punch ticket to semifinals
2/26/2020by Brian Tyl

MARSHALL, Texas — The defense shackled the most notorious shooters.

Pleasant Grove defeated Bullard, 46-43, in a Class 4A, Region II quarterfinal girls basketball playoff game at Maverick Gym on Tuesday.

"Our defense was the key," Lady Hawks' head coach Marsha Cowling said. "We knew that we had to shut down their best 3-point shooter. They got us with their backdoor screen and scored inside. They are scrappy and a well-coached team. We feel a great sense of accomplishment."

Pleasant Grove (28-4) advances to face Dallas Lincoln (20-8) in the Class 4A, Region II semifinals at Texas A&M-Commerce Field House in Commerce, Texas. That game will tip off at 6 p.m. Friday and is the first game of a doubleheader. Lincoln knocked off Aubrey, 59-44, on Tuesday.

The regional championship game is set for 2 p.m. Saturday.

The Hawks had a tough time against Bullard (33-5). The Hawks shot 40.5 percent from the field on 15-of-37 shooting, while the Panthers connected on 17 of 30 shots for 56.6 percent.

Miaya Ware had a team-high 13 points for Pleasant Grove. Haley Day fired in a game-high 15 points for the Lady Panthers.

Bullard made it a 2-point game late in the fourth, trailing 44-42. Unsung hero Asia Lloyd went to the line late in the game and knocked in two charity shots to give the Hawks a 46-43 with 18 seconds left.

Pleasant Grove fouled a Panther player, but she missed her 1-and-1 shot and time ran out.

Ashanti Levingston, who finished with seven points, drove in for a layup and knocked down a trey early in the third for Pleasant Grove.

Later in the third, Shanequa Henry, who scored eight points, swished in a shot from 3-point land for the Hawks. PG went into the fourth quarter with a 36-31 lead.

The Hawks' Phoebe Robertson drove in for a layup for the last score of the first half and the teams went into the locker room tied at 23-all. Ware scored 11 points in the first half.

Ware swished in a trey from the left baseline to give Pleasant Grove an early 13-10 lead at the start of the second. The rest of the quarter was a nip-and-tuck affair.

Haley Day ripped the cords for 11 points for the Panthers in the first half, in which the teams played on even terms.

Bullard finished the first quarter with a 4-0 spurt to knot it at 10-all. Ware paced the Hawks in the first quarter with five points, including a shot from downtown.

Pleasant Grove shot 33.3 percent from the field in the first half on 7-of-21 shooting. Bullard hit 8 of 14 shots for 57.1 percent.

The Panthers out-rebounded the Hawks in the game, 23-19, but had more turnovers, 15-8.