Defending champ Germantown races past DeSoto Central in MHSAA Playoff opener
MADISON — The big question going into 2024 for the Germantown Lady Mavericks was how they'd fair without All-American Madison Booker, who is now averaging 16.6 points a game for the Texas Longhorns.
On Friday night, they answered emphatically, with a dominating 47-22 win over the DeSoto Central Lady Jaguars in the first round of the MHSAA Class 7A Playoffs.
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“It did take us a little while to adjust at the beginning of the season," Germantown coach Jamie Glasgow said. "We had a couple starters coming back from injuries. We didn’t have our full team at the start and had to figure out our roles to make the team better, and as the year progressed everyone has fallen into place to know what their role is, and some nights we can look really good.”
Germantown (21-9) will face cross-town rival Madison Central next Friday at 5:30 p.m. at Mississippi Valley State in the Quarterfinal Round of the MHSAA Class 7A playoffs.
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“First half, we played well," Glasgow said. "We were prepared for what they were going to do and we took it away. We played really good defense in the first half, we moved the ball well and making an extra passes to get open shots.”
The Lady Mavericks raced out to a 10-0 lead to begin the first quarter and held a 16-5 lead at the end of the opening frame.
The second quarter was a mirror image of the first, as Germantown opened the quarter on a 8-0 run to extend their lead to 24-5. The Lady Mavericks held DeSoto Central to just one made field goal in the quarter. Germantown held a comfortable 31-7 lead at halftime.
“We only gave up two breakdowns on defense tonight, so I think defensively we did fine," Glasgow said. "Everyone is good at this time of year, so I’ve been preaching to the girls if we play good defense we can win. Ayla shot the ball well tonight and now we can move to the quarterfinals.”
The third quarter, the Lady Jaguars outscored the Lady Mavericks 5-4 to cut the Germantown lead to 35-12.
The fourth quarter the Lady Mavericks extended their lead out to 41-16 to seal the win.
Sophomore Ayla Benson scored a game-high 17 points to lead Germantown, while Alana Rouser added 10 points for the Lady Mavericks, the defending state champions.
“I knew tonight I had to play strong and knew they were going to double team me, so I had to finish and help get the team going. We came out hitting shots and played together as a team,” Rouser said. “Defensively we knew what we they were going to do and we executed well. Grateful to keep playing and hopefully keep winning so we can back to where we were last year.”
Reagan Dale had 10 points to lead DeSoto Central. The Lady Jaguars finished the season 11-15.
“They came out focused and ready and we were a little nervous," DeSoto Central coach Gwendolyn Johnson said. "It took us a while to get going and by that time it was too late. We had a roller coaster of a season with a young team, so hopefully getting into the playoffs will give us experience for next year.”
