With the district tournament a week away, the Houston High School girls basketball team took care of business by defeating Cabool, 70-58, in a South Central Association Conference game Tuesday night in Houston’s New Gym.
In the final home game of her career, senior forward Olivia Crites was a force on both ends of the floor in the contest, scoring a career-high 33 points and grabbing a career-high 20 rebounds. During her stellar offensive showing, Crites sank 12 field goals from close range and went 9-for-13 at the free throw line.
With Crites scoring 17 points, the host Lady Tigers led 32-24 at halftime. Houston then held off the pesky Lady Bulldogs in the second half to secure the victory.
Both teams experienced foul trouble in the game, as Cabool’s 6-2 junior Hannah Janson fouled out with 5:44 left in the third quarter, while Houston junior point guard Angie Smith picked up her fourth foul midway through the second period and had to spend a lot of time on the bench before eventually fouling out in the fourth quarter.
Sophomore forward Sophia Crites went 8-for-10 at the foul line and scored 14 points for the Lady Tigers, while senior guard Makenzi Arthur scored 8 points in the fourth quarter and finished with 12.
Cabool (6-15) was led in scoring in the game by senior guard Makalah Watson, who sank four 3-pointers and finished with 22 points, while sophomore forward Makinley Aaron had 10.
At halftime, HHS athletic director Brent Hall presented Olivia Crites with a plaque and special ball in honor of her reaching the 1,000-point mark in her career. She reached the milestone during a Feb. 9 home game against Plato.
The Lady Tigers (13-11, 2-4 SCA) wrap up the regular season with an SCA contest Thursday at Willow Springs before playing in next week’s Missouri State High School Activities Association Class 3 District 10 tournament at Mansfield.
