by Bia Page Unified School District
The Lady Sand Devils moved to 2-0 on the season with an easy victory over Chino Valley Saturday. \
They defeated the Cougars 53-16 at Sand Devils Stadium.All players, coaches, refs, cheerleaders and support staff wore masks and practiced social distancing. The stands were sparsely filled. Each player was allowed to have two parents or guardians attend the game, but in an effort to reduce possible exposure to Covid-19, no other members of the public, besides game staff, were allowed in the building.
The Sand Devils scored on their first possession, an assist from point guard Miquedah Taliman to Nadya Begay posted in the paint.Torrance Begay added a point from the free-throw line, and two more from under the basket. Neve Redhair increased the Sand Devils lead when she dropped in a three-pointer.
The Sand Devils defense simply dissected the Cougars offense.Coach Ryan Whitehorse had his team start the game playing its usual full-court pressure defense and it was very effective.
The Cougar offense rarely got the ball across the half court line and they got off only two or three shots the entire first quarter. The Lady Sand Devils led 12-0 at the end of the first quarter.
Three minutes into the second quarter Coach Whitehorse pulled his defense back to the half court line. The outpaced Cougars achieved their first points of the game with 6:10 left in the second quarter, which came during a free throw. The Lady Sand Devils led 34-3 at half time and 42-5 at the end of the third quarter.
Coach Whitehorse put in his entire second team for the entire fourth quarter. The final score read Sand Devils 53, Cougars 16.
Overall, Coach Whitehorse was impressed with his team’s performance Saturday, but still sees areas where it can improve. “We came out a little flat,” he said. Looking farther down the schedule, Coach Whitehorse says he will stick to what his team does best, and stick to their game plan, which will include full-court, non-stop defensive pressure.
Due to Covid-19, most of the teams the Sand Devils would normally play – such as Tuba City, or Chinle – have cancelled their basketball season. Coach Whitehorse says the teams the Lady Sand Devils aren’t nearly as competitive as the 3A north teams.
