by Thomas Leturgey
The Steel City Queens looked ready to redeem themselves against the Greensboro Kaos Sunday afternoon on their home court, but ultimately it didn’t happen that way.
Before the game at A Giving Heart Community Center, Assistant Coach Clyde Manns and the team talked about how they needed to slow down Shatrina Smalls’ team. When they met in the Queens’ season opener, the Kaos broke out early and amassed a 27-point lead that ended up being insurmountable.
And the early strategy worked, with Sierra Williams scoring first and Shatayla White landing a well-time 3D opportunity to extend an early lead to 6-2. Tymesha Melton and Jolene Tamboue proved formidable and quickly tied the game up 6-6. The two teams traded buckets throughout much of the first half. Amber Cook tied the score at 10-10 with 3:41 to go in the first 10 minutes, but Katelyn Fischer hit a jumper to make it 12-10. Fischer was a last-minute addition to the starting lineup because of an ankle injury to Brittany Jackson-Lowe.
Ariana Sanders hit a three-pointer to make it 15-12. When the first quarter came to an end, the Queens were up 15-13.
Tyra James hit a three-pointer to start the second-quarter scoring for the Queens, but Jolene Tamboue hit a 3D to tie the early game. At 6:41 remaining in the quarter, Tyra James was tripped up unintentionally by a Kaos player and landed near midcourt. She waived off medical attention and hobbled her way to the bench. She stayed there with an ice pack on her ankle for the rest of the quarter.
Ariana Sanders scored to put the Queens back on top. Ciara Patterson hit a three-pointer to extend the lead to 27-22. The Kaos came closer, and with 3:16 left the half, despite have several members of the team who were taller than the Queens, they took nearly a dozen shots at a basket right in the paint, under the rim. It was a testament to the Queens for not allowing an easy five-point jumper. The Kaos did not score in that exchange. Chevana Pickard hit a jumper and Tymesha Melton hit one of two free throws following a foul to close out the first half with a one-point lead, 28-27.
The Kaos never looked back.
In the first matchup between these two squads, the Kaos exploded in the first quarter. On Sunday, they took control of the game in the third. The outscored the Queens 25-5.
Jessica Estep, Amber Cook, Chevena Pickard and Jolene Tamboe all had great runs. Ariana Sanders was the first to score for the Queens in the third period and that occurred with 5:27 in the quarter. The Kaos were up 41-29. Sierra Williams tweaked her ankle with about 4:29 in the 3rd but she stayed in the game. Shataya White hit a three-pointer but the score was 53-32 at the end of the third.
Patterson, who had a tough time finding her groove beyond the stripe, hit a three-pointer and White hit a jumper to make it 63-37. White had a productive fourth quarter, but with 3:00 to go in the contest, the Kaos had extended their lead to 72-48. Fischer, who had her own struggles in the game, finished with five points in the final minute to close the gap to the 75-58 finish.
The Queens fall to 0-3 with the loss. After the game, Head Coach Ace Pippens said he hopes that none of the nagging injuries are serious. He said they will wait to see what happens with James’ injury. Things don’t get much easier for the team, which has been hit with an early injury bug, travel to Washington, D.C. next weekend to face the Cyclones at noon. There, Wes Graves’ team is one of the league’s best.
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