History doesn’t repeat, Kinder avoids early exit
Published 4:30 pm Saturday, February 20, 2021
- Photo Credit
Rodrick Anderson
KINDER — The Kinder Yellow Jackets started seeing flashbacks of last year’s first-round playoff loss to Welsh late in the second half Friday, down three points.
But No. 15 Kinder held off No. 18 Welsh’s upset bid for a 64-60 Class 2A bi-district playoff win.
“I feel like that was a good confidence boost for them,” Kinder head coach Natosha Dowies said. “We have really been working on getting that momentum going.
“There were a few games that we saw it, so for them to be able to carry it over into this playoff game against a team that we lost to last year is really huge for us.
“They are excited. We were diving for the loose balls. I think that was the difference in the game. I thought they played hard.”
Tanyjah Plumber led Kinder (14-9) with a game-high 29 points, plus six rebounds and four steals, and Tyja’Nae May had a double-double with 19 points and 11 rebounds.
Kinder controlled the boards in the second half, outrebounding Welsh (12-18) 16-8 over the final 16 minutes and 31-21 for the game.
“We had a few big offensive rebounds in the end that got us those extra possessions,” Dowies said. “We didn’t do too great of a job in the first half. We reiterated that at half time.”
Kinder led 62-60 with 7 seconds left and got an extra possession on an offensive rebound by Hadley Lemons. Plumber was fouled with 4 seconds left and made both free throws to seal the win for Kinder.
Kinder will travel to play No. 2 Amite in the regional round. The Warriors beat No. 31 West St. Mary 98-11 on Thursday.
Kinder twice led by double digits in the first half and 36-26 to start the second half on a 3-pointer by May. But Welsh went deep in the third quarter with five 3-pointers, including one at the buzzer by Ariyon Artis from near half court that put the Greyhounds up 47-46. Artis finished with 16 points before fouling out in the fourth quarter.
Krislyn Cormier drove the lane for a bucket and a 49-46 Welsh lead, but Plumber responded with a three-point play to tie the score at 49 with 6:08 left. Grace Oustalet put the Yellow Jackets up for good on a shot in the paint.
“I thought that Welsh did a really great job of chipping back at our lead,” Dowies said. “They didn’t let us relax. Offensively, we kind of had to slow down.
“We had a few turnovers that were critical. We just had to slow down and focus on getting the good looks from the right people.”
Cormier led Welsh with 22 points, including 13 in the fourth quarter, and Gilayia Begnaud finished with 11 points.
Kinder raced to a 12-1 lead behind, but Welsh rallied with a 10-0 run to pull within one on a putback by Artis with 17 seconds left in the first quarter.
Rodrick Anderson/American Press
