Big run sends Carroll by Weatherford in basketball

By Travis L. Brown

Special to the Star-Telegram

Southlake Carroll sophomore point guard Kennedy Leonard was the difference Monday night in the Dragons' 78-38 bi-district blowout of Weatherford at Nolan Catholic.

With Leonard in the game, Carroll (22-9) mounted three key runs, most importantly a 17-1 run in the third that would dig too deep of a hole for Weatherford (21-13).

Leonard had no trouble driving through the middle of the lane in transition through the first and second quarters, steering Carroll toward two 6-0 runs to begin each quarter.

In the second half, Leonard perfected her drive-and-dish technique, which, in part, helped senior guard Kami Mickens score a game-high 20 points. Carroll had just four assists in the first half, but played a more unselfish game in the second half.

"We talked about don't settle for the 3, get the lead pass and get a layup and that's Kami's bread and butter," Carroll coach Teri Morrison said.

Leonard wasn't too far behind, finishing with 17 points.

Several times throughout the she drew crowd reaction by faking a pass in transition and going up for the layup, faking out a lone Weatherford defender.

"She's their best player, hands down. She makes things happen," Weatherford coach Darryn Shearmine said.

The opposite could be said when Leonard found herself on the bench for the majority of the second quarter after picking up her second foul, creating the opportunity for Weatherford to make a 6-0 run.

"She picked up her second foul and she has the tendency that if she picks up two she's going to pick up three," Morrison said. "We need our floor general on the floor so I had to sit her. I thought we had the game in hand."

The second quarter was the only frame in which Weatherford was competitive, falling just short of Carroll 19-15.

"I hate sitting on the bench," Leonard said. "It's a pain not being able to go out there."

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