The girls basketball team is off to a great start with only one loss on their record so far this season. They had a pretty busy first two weeks traveling to St Louis, MO having a couple games at home and now they are off to Phoenix, AZ to play in the NIKE TOC.
Westside’s only loss was to Liberty, MO, losing by 1 point 44-45. But they bounced right back when they headed back to Omaha winning three straight games at home, against Lincoln East, Papio-LaVista, and Gretna East.
Head Coach Steven Clark is impressed with the girls, and is happy with the overall season so far.
“The season is off to a good start. We had some questions before the games started and we also expected some things to happen. Our only loss is a one pt loss to Liberty MO so that is a good start,” Coach Clark said.
The games at home last week was a tournament, specifically A/B classes challenge. The girls protected their home court, by outscoring every opponent. The team is still working things out to mesh well as a team, but defensively and offensively it is working.
“We won the class A/B challenge last weekend which answered some questions about how good we could be defensively and who could step up offensively. Our depth was good all weekend so that was great to see,” Coach Clark said.
Many leaders on the team help to make sure the girls are scoring and winning games. When playing tough opponents, it is so important that girls are not only playing offense, but defense.
Coach Clark talks about a couple leaders on the team that help the team have a strong defense.
“Sanai and Jayah scored well and everyone else chipped in each game as our defense was really good. Papio and Gretna East can score and we did an excellent job against them,” Coach Clark said.
The first game after the tough loss to Liberty was against Lincoln East. The girls did come out on top winning 42-36. The girls were down in both the first and second quarter but they bounced back with the win.
“The Lincoln East game was simply about staying composed and keeping competing. If we continued to guard them the offense would come around,” Coach Clark said.
With 7 seniors on the team, senior leadership is strong. Coach Clark talks highly of Sanai and her skills and also how she leads the team.
“Sanai’s senior leadership really shined in that game (Lincoln East),” Coach Clark said.
This weekend the girls are playing in Phoenix in the NIKE TOC. There are 16 teams attending, and the teams move in the bracket based on their wins and losses. They should play until next monday depending if they win.
The season has just started, and there is more to come for the girls. Starting off with a 4-1 record the girls are on the right track to make a run at the state tournament.
“We have a lot of season left and we are confident that the girls will have great responses to the adversity that comes each game,” Coach Clark said.
Catch them on the court in Phoenix, AZ this weekend.
