Bristol Herald Courier | Allen Gregory
COEBURN, Va. – Honaker Tigers senior point guard Kalli Miller entered the latest clash against non-district rival Eastside with some extra motivation.
In a showcase for Southwest Virginia basketball last year, Eastside defeated the Tigers in the state semifinals en route to the VHSL Class 1 title.
“We will definitely never forget that game,” Miller said.
Miller and the Tigers gained redemption Thursday with a 33-30 victory over the Spartans.
Apart from the capacity crowd, there was nothing normal about this night.
“It’s good to get the win, but it wasn’t pretty,” Miller said. “Our shots would not fall at all, so we had to rely on our defense.”
Defense was the lone bright spot for both teams in a drama that wasn’t decided until Eastside missed a potential game-tying 3-pointer at the buzzer.
How cold were the Tigers?
I think we shot 18 percent from the floor,” Honaker coach Misty Davis Miller said. “That’s the worst percentage we’ve had this season and I hope it stays the worst.”
The Tigers returned three of the region’s top talents from a 24-5 season in the 5-foot-2 Miller, 5-11 junior forward Carey Keene and 5-11 senior post Alayna McNulty.
McNulty collected 15 points Thursday, while freshman guard Juliana Farmer added eight.
Honaker led 18-13 at halftime but was outscored 7-5 in a strange third quarter.
“We had open looks with our best shooters and the ball would just not go in,” Coach Miller said.
Eastside forced a 26-26 tie with 2:44 left in the game behind two straight hoops from fearless junior guard Shelby Stanley.
The Tigers went up 30-28 at the 30 second mark on a Farmer free throw. Following a second straight offensive rebound by Keene, Miller sealed the game nine seconds later with a pair of free throws.
“It may have been ugly, but we will take the win,” Coach Miller said. “I told the girls that there will be nights like this, so we have to work on defense and rebounding.”