Amara Bell (3) hits the lane. Southeast Raleigh hosted Girls and Boys basketball on Friday February 1, 2013. The Ladies from Southeast won the first half of the double header 47 to 40. Photo by CHRIS BAIRD
Feb 1, 2013
The Southeast Raleigh Lady Bulldogs stayed ahead of Clayton through all of Friday night's game to keep their perfect record intact.
Behind solid performances from Amara Bell, Kaleisha Moore and Amber Richardson, Southeast Raleigh jumped out to a lead in the first quarter and never gave it back.
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Both teams missed shots down low to start the game and points were hard to come by. Southeast led at the end of the first quarter 10-9.
It took some time for each offense to wake up and find momentum. The Bulldogs found it first and took a 23-11 lead into halftime. Clayton was plagued by missed shots from the field. The Comets continued to find open looks on the court all night but could not convert. They scored just 2 points in the second quarter.
The Bulldog defense lagged at the start of the second half, allowing the Comets to build a 15-5 run. The Southeast Raleigh lead was cut to single digits when sophomore Taisha Murphy was fouled on a 3-point attempt. She sank all three free-throws and Clayton trailed by just 7.
A few moments later, a score from Vanessa Pitts tied the game at 29-29.
The fourth quarter, however, belonged to the Bulldogs.
"I told them if they want to be a champion, it starts in this fourth quarter," said Southeast Raleigh coach Nicole Myers.
Amara Bell took control of the game at the start of the final period. She scored 4 early points to create some separation for Southeast on the scoreboard. Despite a last effort from Clayton, Southeast manged to find just enough scoring opportunities to win. They put the game away at the end on the foul line.
"I think they really felt a sense of urgency. We kicked it into a different gear at the end of the game," Myers said.
Bell went on to lead the game in scoring with 14 points. Kaleisha Moore was tremendous at getting to the foul line, and she scored 12 points of her own. Amber Richardson had 10.
For Clayton, Vanessa Pitts led the way with 13 points.
Southeast Raleigh moves to 18-0 on the year and 9-0 in the Greater Neuse Conference, but Coach Myers acknowledged the need to continue playing fundamental basketball.
"I value execution. I don't care about being 18-0 unless we're doing what we're supposed to do to continue that streak. It's the little things that count.
"They just don't want to lose. They love to win."
The winning streak will be on the line again Tuesday night when the team faces Knightdale. Clayton will play East Wake the same night.
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