Ladycats split two at Hammond tourney

Published 12:00 am Saturday, December 4, 2010

By RYAN ARENA

L’Observateur

HAMMOND — East St. John split its first two games at the Hammond tournament this week, defeating Fontainebleau but falling to Mandeville.

The Ladycats now stand at 3-2 on the season.

Kanitra Lee led ESJ over Fontainebleau in its 39-28 victory, scoring 15 points. Kemyra Arvie had a double-double, scoring 12 points and adding 10 rebounds.

The Wildcats pulled away in the second half Wednesday, leading by one at halftime before outscoring its opposition 23-13 in the final two frames.

ESJ (3-2) scored the first 12 points of the game, but mustered only four in the second quarter.

“We still need a little more consistent play,” said ESJ coach Jackson Manuel. “We had a very ugly second quarter and it took us until after halftime to regroup. But Kanitra scored nine of her 15 in the second half, Kemyra scored 10 of her 12 after halftime, so we did a good job refocusing.”

On Thursday, East St. John fell to Mandeville 49-37.

The Wildcats got out the blocks slowly offensively, scoring two in the first quarter and trailing 19-10 at halftime.

Bria Joseph scored 11 to lead ESJ. Arvie notched another double-double, with 12 points and 10 rebounds.

“We got all the good shots in the world, but they wouldn’t fall,” said Manuel. “We missed seven uncontested layups. We’d apply the pressure, get the steal, but not finish. We need to convert those into points, and do a better job of getting to the foul line.”