Coyotes run away in fourth
Benny Munoz/The Madera Tribune
Madera’s Rhynne Mitchell dribbles the ball up the court for a drive to score two of her team-high 18 points in Friday’s win over Edison.
On a night to celebrate the team’s six seniors, the Madera Coyotes girls basketball team picked up its fourth straight County/Metro Athletic Conference victory of the season with a 55-38 win over Edison-Fresno in Joe Flores Gym.
“It’s our first four game win streak in a long time, especially in league,” head coach Jason Smith said. “This guarantees that we will at least tie for third in league, which has been a while since that happened. For these girls to come together with everything they’ve been through, to accomplish this, I couldn’t be happier for them.”
For the third straight game, a fourth quarter surge led to the Coyotes’ victory. They outscored Edison 20-7 in the quarter. Until the fourth quarter, Madera made 10 field goals and was shooting 20 percent from the field. In the fourth quarter, Madera shot 50 percent from the field and made nine field goals.
“We seem to be a second half team, especially when it comes to shooting,” Smith said. “I think we come out nervous and pretty amped up, not just this game, but a lot of games. We started conditioning all the way back in September at 6:30 in the morning. It shows when we get to the fourth quarter. Our legs are still fresh and we’re knocking down those shots. We’re not amped up and a lot more in control.”
Rhynne Mitchell led the Coyotes with 18 points. Lilly Smith added 11 points while five other Coyotes scored.
Jasmine Levy scored eight to lead the Coyotes’ seniors. In addition to Levy, Erika Perez, Faith Rocha, Matty Gonzalez, Aasyria Goins and Sara Luna were honored before the game.
Edison opened the game with a pair of 3-pointer to take the quick lead. Two free throws from Levy and a layup and free throw from Mitchell cut the lead to one. A pair of Levy free throws tied the game at seven with 54 seconds left in the first. Edison added a bucket for a 9-7 lead at the end of the first quarter.
Perez opened the second quarter with a free throw. After an Edison bucket, Mitchell made a free throw and found Luna for a layup to tie the game at 11.
The Tigers got a 3-pointer and three free throws to take a 17-11 lead. Madera battled back with a Levy free throw and a Smith 3-pointer to cut the lead down to two.
Edison hit another 3-pointer for a five-point lead.
Rocha answered with a 3-pointer of her own to start a 10-0 run into the third quarter. Smith tied the game at 20 with a 15-foot jumper.
After a Levy free throw, Mitchell closed the first half scoring with a layup for a 23-20 lead.
Aaliyah String put back a miss to give the Coyotes a 25-20 lead after their run.
Edison stopped the run with a free throw. But, the Coyotes got a free throw from Mitchell. Mitchell found Levy down low for a short jumper to open a seven-point lead.
The Tigers got a 3-pointer and a jumper to get within two.
Madera came back with seven straight points, beginning with a layup from String off a pass from Perez. Off an inbounds pass from Perez, Smith sank a 3-pointer and Mitchell hit two free throws for a 35-26 lead.
The Tigers wouldn’t go away with a layup and a 3-pointer to cut Coyotes’ lead to 35-31 at the end of the third.
Madera put the game away by scoring the first 17 points of the fourth quarter. Luna opened the scoring with a layup off a pass from Mayeli Hill.
Perez drained a 3-pointer to open the lead to nine. Then, Mitchell go involved.
She found Luna for a layup. Mitchell got a steal and turned it into a layup. Off a steal by String, Mitchell drained a 3-pointer. Then, Mitchell got a rebound and went coast-to-coast for a layup.
After a Goins rebound, Smith drained a 3-pointer for a 52-31 lead.
Edison stopped the run with a 3-pointer, but Mitchell answered with a layup.
The Tigers got another 3-pointer, but Rocha drained her second of the game for a 57-37 lead with about a minute left in the game.
Edison closed the scoring with a free throw for a 19-point Coyote victory.
