BAKER — Baker School’s girls basketball team faced the gold standard in Class 1A Monday night as the Gators hosted defending state champion Paxton.
The Bobcats employed a pressing defense and precision passing to roll to a 64-11 win in a game dominated by the visitor almost from the opening tip.
Baker-Paxton girls basketball photos>>>
“We have to make the game full court,” Paxton coach Steve Williams said. “We are not very good in the half court, but we are getting better.
“The second half we were able to work on our half court game and get our cutters in the right spot. We’ve doing a great job on the press in the middle, but not on the front and we did a much better job with the press on the front tonight.”
Baker (2-5) took an early lead on an Amanda Parisi 3-pointer with 7:35 left in the first quarter. The rest of night belonged to the Bobcats (8-2).
A Kortni McKee basket for the Bobcats pulled Paxton to within a point at 3-2 with 7:15 left in the first quarter. Paxton tied the game at 3-3 on a free throw by Katie Sebastian with 61 seconds gone in the game.
The rest of night belonged to the Bobcats (9-2).
With Cassidy Brazile leading the charge Paxton went on a 23-2 run to close out the first quarter. Brazile scored 10 of her 12 points during the run.
Baker’s only other basket of the first period came from Jessica Black with 5:20 left in the quarter.
The Bobcats continued to press the issue in the second quarter outscoring the Gators 20-3.
Kristen Corbett got untracked for Paxton in the second quarter scoring seven of her game-high 15 points.
A Parisi 3-pointer with 26 second left in the quarter was Baker’s only score.
The second entire second half was played with a running clock as the Bobcats coasted to the win.
“We’ve still got a lot of learning to do,” Baker coach Jamie Kerrell said. “It’s fundamental things. We stress the little thingsevery day in practice and when you don’t execute the little things it just piles up and the game can get away from you.
“Paxton is a very well coached team. You know when you play a Paxton you are going to play a fundamentally sound basketball team. When our girls don’t play sound fundamentals it’s real tough.”
Corbett and Brazile were the only two Bobcats in double figures. Sebastian and Bethany Neal each scored eight points for Paxton.
Parisi led Baker with nine points.
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This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Bobcats too strong for Gators (PHOTOS, VIDEO)