Carroll girls basketball not giving up on 7-6A title

With its eighth consecutive playoff appearance under Teri Morrison assured, the Carroll girls basketball program is now trying to make one last rush at the district championship.

But the Lady Dragons (17-11, 7-2 in 7-6A) don’t have total control of their playoff fate. Carroll, which is in second place, trails district leader Euless Trinity by two games with three games to play.

The Lady Dragons played at Richland on Tuesday, while Trinity played host to Hurst L.D. Bell. Carroll then plays host to Trinity on Friday’s senior night. If the Lady Blue Raiders didn’t pull off the upset, it pretty much ends Carroll’s hopes of an eighth consecutive district championship.

Carroll’s first meeting with the Lady Trojans had a very rough beginning. Trinity stormed out to a 20-4 lead after the first quarter. It scored on its first five possessions. Carroll didn’t score on its first five possessions. Carroll also committed 11 turnovers in the opening frame.

Of course, the Lady Dragons have been playing all season with a rotation at the point guard spot. They are without sophomore point guard Brook Lay. Lay is out for the remainder of the season with an undisclosed leg injury.

It’s pretty much been a point guard by committee scenario between Priscilla Smeenge, Kayla Colan and Natalie Flexer.

Morrison has had to switch up a lot of elements with her team’s offensive approach. The Lady Dragons are no longer a transition team, even in games in which they are clearly the better team.

Carroll nearly lost its chance to compete for the district title this past Friday. Thanks to a strong fourth quarter, the Lady Dragons were able to pull away from their archrival Coppell, 44-35.

It isn’t breaking news, but it is still relevant. Carroll is going to have to find a way to limit what Lady Trojans post Trinity Oliver does against them. Oliver outscored Carroll in the first meeting. She scored 32. Trinity won – 54-29.

However, Carroll was pretty effective against L.D. Bell’s Lexi Gordon in the second meeting. Although Gordon scored 22 points in Carroll’s 40-27 win, she had only seven in the second half and was hounded by constant front-back double teams. The Lady Dragons may deploy something similar against Oliver.

In the first

The start of games has not favored the Lady Dragons. Look at their first quarters in recent games and this team has had to dig out of a hole.

Friday against Coppell, Carroll had to overcome a 12-5 deficit in the first quarter. It then trailed L.D. Bell, 8-6, after the first quarter on Jan. 22. The Lady Dragons were sluggish against Haltom on Jan. 19 as they led only 11-7. They and Colleyville Heritage were tied, 13-13, after the first quarter on Jan. 15. Then there’s the aforementioned first quarter against Trinity.

For this team, it does need a much better start, especially against the top teams in the district. Carroll finishes the regular season at Colleyville Heritage on Feb. 9.

This and that

Carroll’s defense has been pretty consistent throughout the season. The Lady Dragons have allowed teams to average just 40.8 points against them. Carroll is averaging 45.3 points per game … the Lady Dragons had a tough week at the free throw line. They’ve dropped back from 63 percent to 60 percent.

This story was originally published February 1, 2016 at 4:14 PM with the headline "Carroll girls basketball not giving up on 7-6A title."