Hillcrest Lady Pats Final Four Bound
Be careful if you're driving in South Tuscaloosa the next few days.
They're dancing in the street called Patriot Parkway.
Why the joy? Becuase the Hillcrest girls hoops squad whipped Pelham 57-42 in the girls Class 6A AHSAA Central Regional final Tuesday at Birmingham's Bill Harris Arena. The win sends HHS back to the Final Four.
Observers noted that from the second quarter on, the game was all Hillcrest. The Lady Patriots went outscored the hapless Panthers 19-8 in the second stanza to take a big 36-24 lead into intermission. Hillcrest forced 14 Pelham turnovers in the first half and scored a whopping 20 points off of them.
The Pats were just getting started. To open the third quarter, Hillcrest went on a 13-0 run in the first five minutes to take a commanding 49-24 lead. The Lady Patriots defense held the Panthers to 18 second-half points, with four in the third quarter, and held them to a shooting percentage of 29% (9-of-31) from the field as HHS motored to victory.
Jareah Branch led the Lady Pats with 15 points to go with five assists, five steals and four boards. Briyana Turner added 10 points with six caroms.
"So, just credit to our team," Browder said. "They worked really hard to get back to this point. To do it two years in a row with this group is really, really special, and I just couldn't be happier for them."
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Gallery Credit: Timothy Bowens
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