Senior center Holly Thomas had 27 points and nine rebounds as the Houston Lady Tigers squeaked past Eminence 51-49 in Monday’s season opener.
Thomas made 11 of her 17 shots, and sophomore forward Erica Keeney added 11 points and seven rebounds as Houston (1-0) had its way on the interior.
“It was one of those games where I told the guards, ‘Don’t shoot it, get it inside,'” Houston coach Brent Kell said. “We had them out-sized so bad, and Holly was just killing them.”
Houston led by six entering the fourth quarter and the advantage was still seven with 30 seconds left. But Eminence rallied within two with its fullcourt pressure and had possession in the waning seconds with the opportunity to tie or win the game.
“We handled the ball really well against their press for most of the game. Then we basically stopped playing. We were playing not to lose instead of to win,” Kell said. “I told them to spread the floor and attack the basket. We spread the floor and dribbled.”
Freshman Kelsey Williams led Eminence with 20 points. Brooke Williams scored 15.
Kendra Welch had eight points and six steals for the Lady Tigers, who shot just 40 percent from the field and were 13-for-23 (57 percent) at the free-throw line. Sarah Pierce added five points.
“We played like it was the first game at times,” Kell said. “We’ve got to guard better in transition, rebound and shoot better. Those are three things I saw that really stood out. I’ve got them all on (Tuesday’s) practice plan.”
