Senators head into tournament after loss

SPARKS - Carson High had a few good spurts against Reed, but it takes a lot more than that to beat the talented Raiders.

Reed pressured Carson into 24 turnovers which it converted into 30 points en route to 76-51 win over visiting Carson in a 4A crossover girls basketball game Tuesday night.

Carson drops to 0-2 in 4A play, while Reed improves to 2-0. Carson left at 8 a.m. today for its tourney at Morro Bay. The Senators swing back into action today at 8 p.m.

"We did OK," Carson coach Todd Ackerman said. "We didn't do the little things when we needed to. They are seeing pressure (like Reed's) for the first time. They are quick and extremely long. I think we did a good of staying with it (press break). We became the aggressor (at times). We hit a couple of shots and the girls on the floor got very aggressive.

"I think we'll be able to pressure people (this season) with the right group of people on the floor."

Ackerman, however, is happy to step away from league play for this tournament. Sure the game will count toward the Senators' win-loss record, but it has no bearing on the 4A standings, and Ackerman will certainly use the four days as a chance to experiment a bit.

"The next four games we get to put people in different spots," Ackerman said. "We'll be able to look at some different things."

One of the things the Senators need to clean up is their ballhandling. Reed slapped a press on from the outset, which resulted in five straight turnovers to start the game, and the Raiders converted four of them into baskets en route to take an early 8-0 lead.

Reed built its lead to 12-2, but Carson scored 12 of the next 17 points to pull to within 17-14 after one.

Truth be told, Carson was fortunate to be that close. Reed missed five or six shots at point-blank range, which frustrated coach Sara Schopper.

"We couldn't put the ball in the bucket," Schopper said. "We missed a lot of easy layups. I told the girls we're working that hard to get to the basket and not being able to finish isn't good.

"We're quick and long. We usually don't put it (our press) on until later in the game."

Carson's second spurt came in the second quarter when it went on a 9-4 run, tying the game at 23. Emily Collins came off the bench for the second straight game to give the Senators a lift. Collins' two baskets, a score by Whitney Nash (13 points total) and a 3-pointer by Savannah Smith comprised the surge.

The Senators missed their next two shots, and Reed went on a 14-2 to run to grab a 39-25 lead in the waning moments of the third quarter.

Reed stretched its lead to 51-35 thanks to six points by Micah Walker, but Carson got a putback by Lisa Yamamoto, a 3-pointer by Nash and a 3-pointer by Eliza Matley to get to within 10, 53-43 with 1:07 left in the third.

Carson went scoreless for the first 4-plus minutes of the final quarter which enabled Reed to build its lead to 66-44.

JV BASKETBALL

CARSON EDGES REED

SPARKS - Megan Barrette's 15 points, including two free throws in the final six seconds enabled Carson to defeat Reed 43-41 Tuesday night.

Kiahna Pimental added 11 points for the Senators, while Emmy Heller added six.