Ayzela Cooper releases a shot for the Patriots. (Photo by Brian Thornton)
The Heritage High School girls basketball team handily defeated Chaparral 74-37 on Wednesday night.
The Patriots (7-2) extended their win streak to three games against a solid Chaparral (5-3) team that has also had early success this season. In the first quarter, Chaparral came out with a very narrow 2-3 zone on defense, aiming to clog up the paint for the Patriots offense. Heritage was afforded plenty of opportunities from beyond the arc in the first quarter, but the Patriots had trouble capitalizing on them.
Izabella Duarte played solid defense, forcing multiple turnovers that helped the Patriots go on a 7-0 run to end the first period, leaving the score at 15-8 for Heritage.
Ayzela Cooper had 19 points and 6 rebounds. Duarte finished the game with 17 points, 5 steals, and 3 blocks. Lakaila Trimble finished with 16 points, 13 rebounds, and 5 steals to round out the top scorers. The Patriots as a team finished with 20 steals.
The stingy Patriots defense continued to wreak havoc on the Pumas. Heritage opened the second period with three straight steals and extended their 7-0 run from the first quarter to 13-2. Heritage also started to exploit the zone Chaparral was running by utilizing flashers at the free throw line, opening up the paint and no longer having to rely on the three ball.
Coach Deanna Meijer joked after the game when asked about her strategy to break down the zone.
“I told them to look inside,” she said. “I’m super happy with the ball movement and the productivity of this team.”
Heritage continued to pull away throughout the second quarter. Cooper capped off a great quarter for the Patriots, hitting three 3 pointers, and Heritage took a 38-18 lead into halftime.
The third and fourth quarters spelled more of the same as Heritage continued to press relentlessly in the first few minutes of each period, consistently extending their lead. Chaparral responded with some buckets of their own but could not keep up with the Patriots.
Meijer spoke about the expectations for the program this season.
“There is definitely a high expectation that I have for my team; the goal is always to win out,” she said. “We’re getting prepared for the league. We’re in the Ivy League, so it’s a tough one, and going into Christmas break we have two tournaments back to back, so we’re getting ready for that.”
The Patriots will try to extend their win streak to four games Friday against Great Oak.
Isabella Duarte puts up a shot inside. (Photo by Brian Thornton)
LaKaila Trimble releases a shot from the top of the key. (Photo by Brian Thornton)
