Suddenly in need of a win, Platte County turned to Rocky Chambers for the necessary offense in the Pirates’ Suburban Conference Blue Division opener.
The sophomore guard scored eight of her team-high 15 points in the third quarter Thursday, Jan. 14 at Platte County High School helping the Pirates pull away to a 56-34 win against Raytown South. They snapped a two-game losing streak in the process of going to 1-0 in league play while improving to 6-4 overall.
“I told them at halftime that they weren’t going to quit,” Stubbs said. “They haven’t quit all season. I think we wore them down a little bit. We realized if we just play basketball and stop taking chances with the basketball we would be fine.”
Platte County hadn’t won since Dec. 14 against Excelsior Springs, losing the first two out of a lengthy holiday break.
Raytown South cut its halftime deficit to 27-19 then closed within 29-23 early in the third quarter.
Chambers’ production avoided any serious upset bid, shooting 70 percent from the floor and hitting one of Platte County’s four 3s. She jumpstarted a 13-3 run, and the Pirates went into the fourth quarter up 42-28.
Chambers is averaging 12.7 points per game, tops for Platte County.
“I just knew I had to control the ball and not rush,” Chambers said, “just run through our plays, do every little thing right and slow it down. It gives me a lot of confidence to execute the way I did in this game and all games when I don’t rush.”
Platte County committed a season-low 12 turnovers in the win.
Jaycie Stubbs, a freshman guard, added a pair of 3-pointers, the second pushing Platte County’s lead to 46-28 early in the fourth quarter.
The Pirates also benefited from the return of Rachel Holden, their leading scorer a year ago. She played her second game back after missing a month with a torn ligament in her foot and contributed eight points while still on limited minutes during her recovery.
Ava White, a junior guard, added nine points for Platte County while also grabbing three offensive boards.
In addition to the limited turnovers, the Pirates shot 46 percent from the floor, showing off the recipe Chris Stubbs wants in an effort to come back from last year’s disappointing win total. They returned all but one player from last year’s eight-win team and added some key parts, including Chambers, and started 4-0 before the recent skid.
“If we don’t turn the ball over, it gives us an opportunity to score, and we don’t shoot the ball too bad,” Chris Stubbs said.
Platte County was scheduled to return to action in the Oak Park Invitational against the hosts on Tuesday, Jan. 19, but the result was not available at The Citizen’s deadline.
A win would mean a likely rematch with Smithville on Thursday, Jan. 21 — weather dependent. The Warriors won their previous matchup 46-33 in Platte County’s second game back from break with Chris Stubbs serving a one-game suspension for picking up two technical fouls in the Pirates’ loss a week prior to Park Hill.
The Oak Park Invitational place games are scheduled for Friday, Jan. 22.
St. Joseph Central 64, Park Hill South 27
The Indians outscored the visitors in each quarter of a Suburban Conference Red Division matchup Thursday, Jan. 14 in St. Joseph, Mo.
Central led 18-4 after the first quarter and 36-14 at halftime, eventually extending the lead to force a running clock in the fourth quarter. Park Hill South freshman forward Alecia Westbrook led the Panthers with 10 points, and Raquel Ried added seven, including one of their two 3-pointers.
Park Hill South’s run of poor shooting continued, hitting just 20 percent of its shots from the field after shooting 14 percent in a loss to rival Park Hill earlier in the week.
Liberty 73, Park Hill 39
The Blue Jays hit a load of 3-pointers in a Suburban Conference Red Division game at Park Hill High School in Kansas City, Mo. on Thursday, Jan. 14.
Liberty pulled its starters to begin the fourth quarter, holding a 72-29 lead. The fourth quarter saw Park Hill outscore the Blue Jays for the first time, allowing just one point. The loss dropped Park Hill to 1-1 in Red Division play.
Bobcat Invitational
Blue Valley 48, Park Hill 44
The Tigers hit the free throws late and held off a rally from the Trojans in the opening round of the Bobcat Invitational on Monday, Jan. 17 in Basehor, Kan. The loss relegated Park Hill to the consolation bracket where they are scheduled to play Olathe North on Wednesday, Jan. 20, weather permitting.
Park Hill senior guard Maliah Hudson scored a game-high 16 points, including a buzzer-beater 3-pointer from 25 feet that pulled the Trojans to within 33-30 entering the fourth quarter. Alex Berger added 11 points for the Trojans, including other two 3-pointers.
Park Hill shot just 9 of 19 from the free throw line while Blue Valley knocked down 17 of 26.