Joel "Jewlz" Morris
Sports Editor
Making their first home stand this season, the Jags defended the Jaguar Den with a 71-54 win over the Haskell Indians on Nov. 8.
Jaguar junior forward Maya Simon provided a spark off the bench, scoring 15 points, netting eight points during a 10-4 run in the first half.
“Coming in, I know what I need to bring,” Simon said. “Energy I need to bring to the team.”
Simon also was a valuable piece on defense, using her length and activity to affect the Indians’ offense, leading to easy buckets for the Jags.
“I’m long and lengthy, coach Minner always says that, so wherever coach Minner puts me, I’m going to work hard, do what I need to do,” Simpson said.
The Jaguars continued to get production from two other upperclassmen, senior guard Evelyn Lorenzo finishing with 16 points and junior forward Kierra Sanderlin, finishing with 13 points.
This win showcased the Jags’ depth with 10 players scoring at least a point and totaling 15 steals as a team, contributing to the double-digit victory.
“We’re deep and we can play big, we can play small, so that’s exciting,” Minner said. “It’s nice to have depth, we’re deeper than last year.”
Heading into the fourth quarter, the Jags led 53-36, but Minner didn’t want his team to take their foot off the pedal.
“Don’t let up on defense,” Minner said.
Drawing up their press on a clipboard, Minner went over rotations with his team to perfect it.
Coach Minner knew coming into this game what challenges the Indians presented due to their play style and senior forward Ivy Fox who coach Minner says is a “tough matchup.”
“They shoot a lot of threes and run, so you want to not let them get excited from three and we didn’t,” Minner said. “We had some defensive breakdowns, first quarter, first half but we fixed it.”
Capturing the first home win of the season can potentially set up a strong home record similar to last season, going 10-4.
The Jaguars will have a full week of rest and preparation for their next opponent, Texas Wesleyan University, at 3 p.m. Nov. 15 at home.
