By RAY BENTON
Leader sports editor
The Cabot Lady Panthers had very little trouble in their opening game of the season, beating Forrest City 89-29 in the first round of the Heavenly Hoops Classic at Mount St. Mary’s Academy in Little Rock.
The Lady Panthers’ pressure was just too much for the Forrest City ball handlers. Once the turnovers were forced, Cabot did a good job of keeping the ball moving until an open shot was available.
“We passed the ball really well,” Cabot coach Carla Crowder said. “That’s what created all those layups. We work really hard on transition. That’s something we work on every day in practice so I was glad that we did a pretty good job of it today. It’s nice to get a good win under our belt.”
Cabot was a bit ragged early on, committing 10 turnovers in the first quarter, but the defense forced 19 turnovers by Forrest City. Cabot still held a 24-9 lead after one period, and committed just six turnovers the rest of the game.
Meanwhile, the Lady Mustangs finished the game with 46 turnovers. Elliot Taylor had five steals and four assists in that first quarter. Taylor played very little in the second quarter and all the starters left the game for good less than halfway through the third.
Still, Taylor played enough to finish the game as the leading scorer. She finished with 18 points, five steals and five assists.
Ryan Wilson and Alyssa Hamilton each scored 14 for Cabot while guard Jaylin Bridges added 11. Bridges was 3 of 5 from three-point range.
Ally Van Enk also played a complete game. She finished with seven points, eight steals and six assists.
The only negative for Cabot came at the free-throw line. Cabot hit just six of 13 attempts at the line.
The Lady Panthers will play Watson Chapel at 8:30 p.m today in the second round. Watson Chapel beat tournament host Mount St. Mary’s 70-50 on Monday. Other games in the tournament saw North Little Rock beat Russellville 76-55 and Star City rout Sylvan Hills 58-29.
