Veterans girls remain undefeated in region play

MILLEDGEVILLE -- The zone had some gaps, and there were open shots that didn't fall.

A strong ending to the first quarter and quality run in the second quarter nevertheless gave Veterans a cushion in a 44-35 win Tuesday over Baldwin in a battle of GHSA Region 2-AAAA contenders.

Veterans remained unbeaten in 10 region games and improved to 18-4 overall, while Baldwin fell to 7-2 in region play.

The Warhawks scored nine straight points in the first quarter while the Braves went nearly three minutes without a point.

Veterans led 18-11 after the teams exchanged 3-pointers, came up scoreless on three trips and then put points up on five of six possessions for a 26-11 lead, getting balance along the way.

Baldwin cut its 29-16 halftime deficit to seven in the third but was blanked for the final 4:02 and trailed 36-24 entering the fourth quarter.

FOUR WHO MATTERED

Kya Cochran: The floor general had only six points, but three came as that answer to a fourth-quarter Baldwin 3-pointer. Actually, her first 3 came in the second quarter and was countered by one from Baldwin's Akirah Robinson. Cochran also had five assists.

Tykeasia Williams: The senior guard led Baldwin with 15 points, scoring from inside and out in accounting for 43 percent of her team's points.

Ebony Allen: The 5-foot-10 senior forward helped make up for the absence of Morgan Riley by grabbing six rebounds, 1.8 above her average, for the Warhawks.

Carrington Kee: She led Veterans with 10 points, including a pair of 3-pointers, and teamed with Cochran to give the Warhawks quality guard play when Baldwin pressed or trapped.

WORTH NOTING

On a roll: Veterans head coach Nicki Miranda was going to be thrilled with any kind of win in Milledgeville, considering the Warhawks hadn't won there until last season.

Still out: Veterans won without Morgan Riley, who suffered a foot injury late in Friday's win over West Laurens and is in a boot. She'll be out for another week.

TURNING POINT

The teams started out slowly, and it was tied at 5 with 2:40 left in the first. But the Warhawks converted a miss and two turnovers into seven points to end the first quarter. Baldwin got a free throw with 18.7 seconds left to cut the margin to six, but that was the closest it got the rest of the way.

OBSERVATIONS

Missed opportunities: The Braves failed to take advantage of four second-chance opportunities in the second half, and they were perhaps a little too patient against a Veterans zone that was extended more than one might expect. Baldwin got Veterans into a little foul trouble and got to the line when aggressive on offense.

ALSO TUESDAY

Baldwin's defense kicked into high gear late in the second quarter and put the Braves ahead for good en route to a 60-46 win. Donta Justice was all over the place for the Braves, getting 27 points. Josh Linder's 22 paced Veterans.

THEY SAID IT

Miranda: "I'm just happy to get out of here with a win. My first year, we lost in triple-overtime. My second year, we played without (two starters). And then we came out and stomped them, and they came back out, it was a tale of two halves. They got like 25 points in free throws (in a win)."

Baldwin head coach Randall Owens, whose team lost 62-40 in the first meeting: "Our players played a full 32 minutes. They competed, they played very hard, as opposed to the Dec. 11 game. It was an anomaly. We normally play hard the whole game. Veterans is a very good team, and our players are trying to get to that level. They took control of the (first) game and we never recovered."

Miranda: "Our goal was just to protect the lead, not give them any momentum, limit their possessions. We held them in the 30s, and any time we can hold a team to that, I feel confident."

Owens on the game plan in the rematch: "We spent a lot of time working on defense. We didn't play very good defense the first game. This time around, I believe our defensive energy and intensity was key for us (Tuesday). We're small, we lack size, but our players are scrappy. They play hard and compete, and try to make life difficult for our opponents."

WHAT'S NEXT?

Veterans visits Northside on Saturday while Baldwin plays Friday at Upson-Lee.

This story was originally published January 26, 2016 at 11:30 PM.