Tigerettes fall to Bridgeport, 44-40

When coming off of volleyball season, there’s a little bit of leeway for your volleyball players to get into basketball season and be ready to play.

That time is fast ending in the eyes of Jacksboro Girls Basketball Coach Todd Matlock.

With four games under the Tigerettes’ belt, Matlock said he is still seeing the same mistakes as in the opener from his volleyball players, which he blamed in part for the Tigerettes’ 44-40 loss to visiting Bridgeport Saturday morning.

It was Jacksboro’s second straight loss, both at home, to fall to 2-2. Matlock said by this time the mistakes of the early season need to be a thing of the past.

“We had way too many turnovers today,” Matlock said. “By game four, we need to be eliminating much of that.”

Matlock was pleased with the way many of his younger players performed in a reserve role. He noted by district play in a couple of weeks, he hopes to have them ready to go in at any time.

The nip-and-tuck game also hurt Jacksboro early in the fourth frame, where the squad was 1-7 at the free throw line in the first three minutes. Both teams had trouble finding the hole to start the fourth with the Sissies holding a 33-31 lead.

Trinity Tisdale’s free throw was the first points with the senior point guard’s nifty pass to Baylee Thompson for a bucket cutting the lead to two with 3:48 left. Tisdale then buried another pair of free throws to knot the game at 36 with 2:55 to go.

Over the next 1:40 a pair of buckets and a free throw by Ashley Lay put the visitors up 41-38 with 1:12 to go. Jacksboro hurt itself with sloppy passing and play in the late going, three turnovers in the final 90 seconds to help Bridgeport hang on.

Paced by a six-point Leah Plaster first quarter, Jacksboro overcame a 30 percent shooting frame to be knotted at 10 after one. Alex Holman’s three-pointer and a pair of Plaster free throws put the hostesses up four mid-quarter.

 An 11-1 Sissie run gave the visitors a 24-18 lead late in the half. Hadlee Richardson and Plaster came through with buckets late to cut the halftime deficit to 24-22.

A pair of Plaster hoops tied the game at 26 early in the third. A 9-2 Jacksboro skein was helped by buckets from Thompson and Jordan Nichols as the Purple led 31-26.

Bridgeport closed the third on a 7-0 string, paced by five Morgan Davidson tallies, to give the visitors a 33-31 lead heading to the fourth.

Plaster had 14 to pace Jacksboro. The Tigerettes return to action Tuesday to close a three-game homestand with Stephenville tipping off at 11:45 a.m.