Lady Tigers open season with win over Neshoba

The Demopolis Lady Tiger basketball team never trailed Monday night while using a balanced offensive attack to grab a 68-57 victory in its season opener against Neshoba Central (Miss.).

“Our game is to be up tempo. We want to play fast. We want to move the ball, move the ball, and get the defense into a bad situation so we can take the easy shot,” Demopolis coach Tony Pittman said. “We were not very effective with our press. I think that has a lot to do with getting our legs underneath us and it being the first ballgame.”

The Lady Tigers held a 19-13 lead after one quarter of play and proceeded to stretch their lead to double digits by halftime. Demopolis all but put the game away in the third quarter with a suffocating defensive effort that choked the Lady Rocket offense to a total of only eight points in the frame.

Erica Bennett led the Lady Tigers with 18 points to go along with four assists, four steals and three rebounds. Sylvia Clayton was one of a quartet of Lady Tigers with 12 points on the night. She added five rebounds, five assists and six steals in the effort. Ivery Moore had 12 points and 11 rebounds while Shakesaney Bell added 12 points off the bench.

“What I love about this team is that they don’t mind sharing the basketball,” Pittman said. “They don’t mind making the extra pass.”

Kalee Routh had 13 points had to lead Neshoba. Andria Carter had 11 points and eight rebounds while Relissa Ray scored 10 points.

The Lady Tigers (1-0) are set to play again Dec. 4 at Thomasville.