MONTGOMERY – The Lady Trojans of Charles Henderson High cruised to a 55-12 win over Briarwood Christian in the first round of the girls Class 5A Southeast Regional Saturday morning in Montgomery’s Garrett Coliseum, setting up a clash with No. 1 Ramsay High this Wednesday for the regional title.

Ramsay High defeated Brewbaker Tech by a score of 74-41 Saturday.

CHHS is ranked No. 2 in the state at 25-6, but records and rankings matter little to CHHS Lady Trojans head coach Dyneshia Jones.

“Regardless of the team and their record, I am always coming in here with butterflies and making sure we are prepared,” said Coach Jones. There are a lot of upsets in the game of basketball. We prepare like everyone is the number one team in the state.”

The Lady Trojans dominated Briarwood on both ends of the court Saturday morning for the 55-12 win.

CHHS did not allow Briarwood an offensive rebound in the first two quarters of play, en route to a 34-5 halftime lead.

“We are adamant about defense, because defense will get us out on the break and some easy layups,” said Coach Jones. “I think the defense was a lot better because we missed a lot of shots but we made a lot of layups.

“It was all about preparation. They know what they have to do, for every offensive rebound the opposing team gets, so we prepared them well about boxing out, and they did a great job and is showed this morning.”

Senior Maori Davenport paced CHHS with 15 points, 14 rebounds, two blocked shots and two assists, while Niaira “Tootie” Jones scored 14 points, had seven assists and also seven steals on defense.

Samira Moore scored ten points, Tatyana Siler eight, Reece Moore three, Makala Hobdy two, Kayla Grant two and Kristian Jackson one point.

CHHS led 18-3 after the first quarter, 34-5 at the half and 47-10 after three quarters en route to the 55-12 victory.

“I’m proud of the way the girls played,” said Coach Jones. “I’m a coach that will fuss a lot. I had little to say in the locker room at halftime, so I’m proud of the way they played. The game plan went well.”

For Coach Jones and the Lady Trojans, it was another step towards defending their state championship this season, a season that has been a subject of controversy dealing with Davenport and eligibility, which has been temporarily restored pending a future court decision.

“We’ve been through a lot, but it keeps us determined to keep fighting harder,” said Coach Jones. “With everything that has gone on with Maori, she has held her composure the whole time. We never gave up, but when she came back it was even sweeter.
“She is still the beast, still the same one. She was absent but came back stronger than ever. I never saw her down. She does not show emotions anyway.”

CHHS will face Ramsay High this Wednesday, 9 a.m. in Montgomery’s Garrett Coliseum, with the winner going to Birmingham for the Final Four.

“Everybody wants to beat Charles Henderson right now, in 5A,” said Coach Jones “We don’t even look at the rankings. I don’t even discuss that with them. It really doesn’t matter. They don’t even have to be ranked and a team can outscore us one day. We’ve just got to be prepared for anybody.”