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Coyotes win another overtime game


Wendy Alexander/The Madera Tribune

Madera’s Brooke Houghton drives the lane during Thursday’s overtime victory over the Reedley Pirates. Houghton scored 12 points in win.

 

For the second game in a row in Joe Flores Gym, the Madera Coyotes girls basketball team was forced to go into overtime before pulling out a victory, this time it was over the Reedley Pirates.


The Matilda Torres Toros forced the Coyotes into overtime in the home opener before Thanksgiving. Reedley outscored the Coyotes 19-12 in the fourth quarter to force overtime, but Rhynne Mitchell scored seven of Madera’s 10 points in overtime for a 57-53 victory Thursday in Joe Flores Gym.


“We panicked at the end,” head coach Jason Smith said. “We are a young team. I tried to call some stuff at the end.”


Mitchell led the Coyotes with 13 points, 11 coming from the free throw line (11-of-18). Lilly Smith and Brooke Houghton each added 12 points and Aliyah String scored nine.


“I played Rhynne way more than I expected to. She tried to do too much. She’s so excited to be back,” Smith said. “I thought Lilly played a great game. I told her to put her foot to the ground and go to the basket, and she did. She hit some big jumpers for us and some layups. Brooke played outstanding. If we can get her to be a little more under control in the open court, we’ll be find. We all have to get under control. We are a young team and are getting closer to healthy. Once we’re healthy and in control, we’ll be good.”


The Coyotes got off to a quick 6-0 lead behind four points from Houghton and two free throws from String. Reedley cut the lead to two before Janiah Warren put back a missed shot. The Pirates tied the score at eight. Smith hit back-to-back 3-pointers for a 14-11 lead at the end of the first quarter.


Reedley tied the score at 14 before Houghton scored three straight points. After a Reedley bucket, Mitchell made a free throw and Ashley Hernandez made a driving layup for a four-point lead.


Houghton answered a Reedley free throw, but the Pirates scored a late bucket for a 21-19 Coyote lead at the half.


Reedley took the lead with a 3-pointer to open the second half.


The Coyotes came back with 10 straight points. Houghton started the run with a driving layup and put back a missed shot. String sank a pair of free throws and Smith hit a pair of jumpers for a 31-22 lead.


Reedley cut the lead to five before a Mitchell free throw. After a Reedley free throw, Eliana Jaramillo put back a miss for a 35-28 lead heading into the fourth quarter.


Warren made a layup off an inbounds pass to open the fourth quarter for a nine-point lead.


Reedley came back with a 3-pointer and a free throw. String putback a miss to get the seven-point lead back.


Both teams went scoreless for two minutes before a Reedley layup. Mitchell made a pair of layups for a seven-point lead.


Reedley outscored Madera 6-1 to cut the lead to two before a String layup. Reedley hit a 3-pointer to cut Madera’s lead to one, but Smith made a layup with about a minute left.


The Pirates made a free throw and hti a 3-pointer with about 30 seconds left in the game for the lead.


Mitchell drove to the lane and was fouled with 4.6 seconds left. She missed her first free throw, but sank the second to send the game to overtime, tied at 47.


Warren opened the scoring with another layup off an inbounds pass. She was also fouled and made her free throw for a three-point lead.


Mitchell answered a Reedley layup with one of her own. The Pirates scored three straight points to tie the game at 52 with 1:08 left.


Mitchell then took over by driving the lane and getting fouled. She went 4-for-6 from the line over a 21 second span for a 56-52 Coyote lead.


The Pirates made a free throw to get within three with 12.1 seconds left. Mitchell made a free throw with nine seconds left for a two-possession game and the Pirates couldn’t get a shot off for a four-point Coyote win.

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