Salisbury girls 74, West Davidson 21

By David Shaw

dshaw@salisburypost.com

TYRO — It didn't take the Salisbury girls basketball team long to shake off the rust and return to doing what it does best.

The Hornets hardly altered the blueprint Thursday night in another runaway win, this one a 74-21 decision at West Davidson.

"We were eager to get back on the court after all that time off," senior Bubbles Phifer said. "It really doesn't take us long to get back into a rhythm. Everybody just has to be on the same page."

Salisbury (17-0, 6-0 CCC) encountered few obstacles against the Green Dragons (2-14, 0-6), opening the game with a 17-0 spurt and never glancing back.

"The effort and enthusiasm after being off so many days was a real positive," Salisbury coach Andrew Mitchell said.

"We hadn't practiced since last Friday. This was just our leadership, our top five or six players coming in ready to play."

Mitchell allowed his starters to play the first and third quarters and went with his second string in the second and fourth periods. Phifer scored 10 of her 15 points in the opening quarter and Olivia Rankin added eight as SHS raced to a 26-4 lead.

It ballooned to 38-8 when Tori Woods came off the bench and hit a 3-pointer from the right side with 1:48 remaining in the first half."Those second-stringers came in and did a good job keeping up our momentum," said Ashia Holmes, Salisbury's top scorer with 16 points. "They were very aggressive on defense."

The Hornets forced 31 turnovers, including 10 in the second quarter. That's never a winning formula, particularly against the defending state champion.

"They go all out on every possession — on offense and defense," West Davidson coach David Klinkoski said. "They play the game the way it's supposed to be played."

Especially Phifer, the Hornets' queen bee. Sporting a new look — black headband and a ponytail — she sparked the defense with eight steals.

"It's the Candace Parker look," Phifer said. "Just something different."

Her consistency remains unchanged. Phifer made the play of the game when she stole the ball near midcourt, raced in for a layup, got hacked by a West defender and completed a three-point play, giving Salisbury a 60-15 lead with 2:30 remaining in the third quarter.

Moments later she capped her night with a pretty 10-footer from the right side.

"This was good for all of us," Mitchell said. "They love competition, and they'd much rather play games than be in the gym practicing and running sprints."

SALISBURY (74) — As. Holmes 16, Phifer 15, Rankin 8, Heilig 8, Woods 7, Miller 6, Ay.Holmes 5, Allison 5, Feamster 2, Richardson 2, Young, Lebowitz.

WEST DAVIDSON (21) — Myers 5, Yarboro 4, Morgan 4, Hairston 3, Brame 3, Sarver 2.

Salisbury 26 14 26 8 — 74

W. Davidson 4 8 3 6 — 21