SIMLA — Letting an underdog hang around is like letting a stray cat inside. Once it believes it belongs, look out.
That’s why top-ranked Simla quickly shed upstart Elbert with a third-quarter flurry to squash the upset bid in a 50-39 home win Saturday.
“In the first half, as a team, we didn’t play the defense that we can play,” said Simla’s Jaci Digby, who scored a game-high 17 points.
Elbert trailed 25-23 at the break, but Simla blitzed the Bulldogs 17-5 in the third quarter to stay unbeaten at 10-0.
“We started making shots,” Cubs coach Al Snyder said. “I mean, we missed 10 two-foot shots in the first half.”
After going scoreless in the first half, forward Kenzi Mitchell scored seven in the pivotal third.
Elbert (8-2) looked like a different team after intermission, and coach Rebecca Tomlin knew the culprit.
“I blame me,” she said. “I pulled out of our press, and I shouldn’t have. I gave them too much time to think, and I think if we would have kept our press on, we wouldn’t have sat back on our heels.”
Sophomore Logan Franek led Elbert with 11 points and 10 rebounds while Shelby Loflin added 10 points for the Bulldogs, who used only six players. Simla’s depth was evident in the latter stages, as Snyder was able to regularly shuffle in fresh players.
“I knew Elbert would be a test because their kids are great,” Snyder said. “But if we play like we’re capable of, we can be exciting to watch.”
The outcome might have been more lopsided had Simla not missed nine free throws in the fourth. Elbert had a brief flurry at the start of the quarter to trim the deficit to 43-37.
“Usually when you get up on a team by 15, they back off a bit, but Elbert kept fighting,” Digby said.
Elbert 10 13 5 11 — 39
Simla 12 13 17 8 — 50
Elbert — Harris 0 1-4 1, M. Franek 3 0-0 8, Loflin 3 4-6 10, L. Franek 3 5-8 11, Heizenrader 2 3-6 7, Upchurch 1 0-0 2. Totals 12 13-24 39.
Simla — Digby 5 5-10 17, Toney 0 0-2 0, Protsman 4 0-0 8, Mitchell 2 5-9 9, Wilson 2 4-4 9, Ja. George 0 0-0 0, Bauer 0 0-0 0, Alexander 1 3-4 5, Je. George 1 0-2 2. Totals 15 17-31 50.
3-pt. goals — M. Franek 2; Digby 2, Wilson. Total fouls — Elbert 20, Simla 18. Fouled out — Alexander. Technical fouls — None.
