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Donettes stop Lady Mules to earn return to Lady Royals Christmas Classic title game
BROSELEY — The Doniphan Donettes put the pedal to the metal and didn’t let up against Poplar Bluff in the semifinals of the Lady Royal Christmas Classic on Friday, taking the contest 57-26.
Throughout the entire 32 minutes, Doniphan displayed its signature style of pressuring the ball in the backcourt.
“We always go in with the game plan of pressuring the basketball,” Doniphan coach Adam Epps said. “We tried to get out and run with the ball.”
Doniphan’s pressure seemed to work on the Lady Mules as Poplar Bluff struggled to even get the ball past the halfcourt line and were held to single digits in each quarter.
“It was good to see us compete with them a little bit in the first quarter,” Poplar Bluff coach Soley Dugas said. “We just let the game get away from us a lot quick than we would’ve liked. (Doniphan’s) press is really good and that’s where a lot of their success comes from.”
The Donettes’ offense was led by Carsyn Hagood with 21 points, while Ellie White had 12.
For the Lady Mules, Jadyn Brandon was the point leader with nine as Poplar Bluff struggled to get anything going offensively — and also had three players committing three fouls by the time halftime rolled around.
“I tried to tell the girls to not get intimidated,” Dugas said. “We still needed to attack the basket and attack going forward. We tend to go side-to-side a lot and that’s where their trap defense gets us. It’s something we need to go over in practice.”
The game was close at the start as the Lady Mules held a 9-8 lead four minutes in, but Doniphan went on a 16-0 run into the second quarter until Brandon snapped the scoreless streak with six minutes remaining in the first half.
However, the Lady Mules were held to only three points in the second quarter as the Donettes went up 34-12 at halftime. From there, Doniphan kept applying the pressure and got the running clock in the fourth to put the ballgame away.
“Poplar Bluff is a program that’s trying to get back after it and Coach Dugas is doing a good job over there,” Epps said. “They’re definitely a tougher team than they have been in the past.”
Doniphan will play Portageville for the Lady Royals Christmas Classic championship on Saturday night, while Poplar Bluff will face Neelyville in the third-place game earlier that night. The third-place game is slated for 6 p.m., followed by the championship at 7:30 p.m.