Jada Martin (10) goes coast-to-coast for the Lady Griffins, converting a steal into two points against North Central.
The Lady Griffins, rebounding from back-to-back losses against Keenan and Newberry two weeks ago, rattled off their second consecutive region win Friday night, dismantling the Lady Knights of North Central 66-20 at home.
Freshman Tanise Davis got the start at point guard for Fairfield Central Friday night and lit up the scoreboard with 20 points to lead the Lady Griffins. Jada Martin followed with 17 points on the night.
The Lady Griffins snatched the opening tip and raced out to a quick 12-2 lead against North Central. While the offense was on fire, the defensive press kept the Lady Knights on their heels through most of the first quarter. By the 2:51 mark, however, the Lady Griffins went cold from the floor while the Knights clawed their way back into the game, cutting the lead to 13-7. A late quarter run by Fairfield stretched the lead to 23-7 at the buzzer, while the Griffin defense tightened their grip. Fairfield Central had 12 steals while the Knights contributed to their woes by turning the ball over un-forced seven times in the first half. The speedy, aggressive Lady Griffins’ defense shut out the Knights in the second quarter, giving Fairfield a commanding 43-7 lead at the break.
With a running clock in the second half, the Lady Knights continued to struggle against the press. It wasn’t until three minutes into the third quarter that North Central’s Brianna Brown broke the spell with the Knights’ first points since the 2:51 mark in the first quarter, making the lead 50-9, Fairfield.
The Lady Griffins host Columbia High School Tuesday night at 6 p.m., a region rematch of a Jan. 4 contest where the Lady Griffins pulled out a 46-45 win in the closing seconds at Columbia.
FC—Chyna Moore: 11, Chelsea Seibles: 11, Jada Martin: 17, Tanise Davis: 20, Tiea Quanna Pearson: 1, Patrice Jeter: 2, De’Lexus Cloud: 4, Ladeshja Cook: 2.
NC—Brianna Brown: 2, Morgan Bass: 10, Nyasia Joe: 1, Haley Thomas: 7.
