Clock runs out on Devilette comeback as Lady Warriors win

Lebanon's girls trailed No. 6 Riverdale by 10 with a minute to play Friday night. But the Devilettes played like it was much closer and gave the Lady Warriors as much as they wanted before the visitors from Murfreesboro escaped Campbell Brandon Gym/Hester Gibbs Court with a 49-40 victory.
The Devilettes led most of the first quarter before a 9-0 Riverdale run gave the Lady Warriors a 13-10 lead early in the second. The visitors opened a 30-16 halftime lead as they improved to 25-3 for the season and 11-1 in District 7-AAA.
"We outscored them by five in the second half," Lebanon coach Darian Brown said after his Devilettes dropped to 9-16, 5-7. "We keep getting that four-minute stretch of a game that just kills us. We break our back and we put ourselves in such a hole to get out of."
Lebanon leaped to a 10-4 lead as Jasmin Brooks scored seven of her 17 points during the first period.
But Riverdale rallied behind Alex Bivens, who tossed in 21 points, and Middle Tennessee State-signee Anne Marie Lanning, who totaled 12. But it was Clarke Davis' only four points of the night which put the Lady Warriors ahead 11-10 and 13-10.
A three-pointer by Kelsey Blackburn brought Lebanon within 16-15 before Riverdale ripped off a 14-2 run to end the first half seemingly in control.
Riverdale opened the second half with an 8-1 run, completing a 22-2 surge, to go up 38-17.
But three-pointers by Ebony Marshall and Crystal Howse and a pullup jumper by Brooks brought Lebanon within 40-25 going into the fourth quarter.
Lebanon continued whittling away at the lead until Brooks' layup off a steal brought the Devilettes within 48-40 in the final minute.
"We played them so well at their place, we got beat maybe five or six," Brown said. "So we came in with a lot of confidence.
"They made a couple of changes from the first time we played them and it got them some easy buckets and we didn't do a good job adjusting. But at halftime, we made our adjustments. We changed how we were going to cover them and take away their backdoors and screens on the switching the picks. So we did a better job.
"It's so hard to play them. When you got a Division I-signee and anytime you need a bucket, you say, 'go to the hole and get me a bucket'. People don't understand how awesome it is to coach that kind of player."
Icelyn Elie scored six of her eight points in the fourth quarter for Lebanon while Howse matched Brooks' two triples on her way to seven. Marshall and Blackburn each threw in a three and London Elie two.
There's no rest for the weary Devilettes, who travel to Tommy Martin Gym/The Cave tonight to take on a top-ranked Mt. Juliet team which has won 61 straight at home.
"Here's your payoff: You play Cookeville [Tuesday] which is 11th or 12th in the state," Brown said. "You play Riverdale, which is ranked fourth or fifth in the state. And then your third game of the week, you go play the No. 1 team in the state.
"We don't have any pressure on us. I told the girls, 'let's just go play'. We'll do a couple of things different than we did the first time against them.
"We're just trying to get better for district tournament time."
Sports Editor Andy Reed can be reached at 444-3952 ext. 17 or by e-mail at andy.reed@lebanondemocrat.com.