Entering Saturday afternoon, Lamar University sophomore guard Sabria Dean was in a bit of a shooting slump by her standards.
After scoring a season-high 31 points against Howard Payne earlier this month, Dean had struggled from the field since, shooting a combined 9-of-34 in three straight losses for the Cardinals.
“She hasn’t liked her shooting percentage in the last few games,” Lamar head coach Aqua Franklin said of Dean. “Since then, she’s tried to figure out how to get that (scoring) back.”
Dean broke out of her slump in a big way on Saturday, scoring 25 points during a 57-44 win over Loyola New Orleans at the Montagne Center in Beaumont.
Dean shot 11-of-16 from the field to carry a Lamar offense that otherwise struggled to find consistency. The Cardinals (2-4) built a big lead early then hung on late, snapping their three-game losing streak in the process.
As a team, Lamar only shot 36 percent from the field, but Dean’s hot hand was enough to finish off the victory.
“Mostly just taking what the defense gives me and not thinking too much about it,” Dean said about her breakout performance. “When you’re missing, you can’t dwell on it. Just have to do what I know how to do and have fun playing basketball.”
Loyola made the first two baskets of the game, but Lamar responded by ripping off a 17-2 run early. At the end of the first quarter, the Cardinals held a 17-8 lead. Lamar continued to build its advantage in the second quarter, mostly because of a strong defensive effort.
Loyola shot 27 percent from the field in the first half, and with 16 first half points from Dean, the Cardinals had a commanding 35-17 halftime lead.
The second half was more of a “grind” for Lamar. Besides Dean’s production, the Cardinals continued to struggle offensively. Luckily, so did Loyola.
Lamar forced Loyola into 20 turnovers, scoring 24 points off those mistakes. Still, Lamar had to hold off the Wolfpack in the fourth quarter as the big lead evaporated.
Utilizing a full-court press, Loyola (0-1) got back within single digits as Lamar got a bit “sloppy” in the late few minutes, Franklin said.
While Dean was going off, Lamar’s second-leading scorer was being held in check by Loyola. Freshman forward Akasha Davis saw double-teams throughout the contest. She finished with 11 points in the game, including multiple baskets late to help Lamar seal the win.
“This was a great experience for her,” Franklin said of Davis getting major defensive attention. “You saw down the stretch, she was very aggressive with it and didn’t allow herself to get doubled.”
Franklin hopes Lamar’s win on Saturday will serve as a “reset” for the Cardinals, who are in the midst of a long stretch of home games. The Cardinals will be back at the Montagne Center on Tuesday to host McNeese.
In the meantime, Franklin will try to prepare her team for the zone defense that McNeese will likely employ. Texas State, which will arrive in Beaumont next Friday, also plays zone, according to Franklin.
“The games are now going to come very quickly, and I think that will be in our favor,” Franklin said. “We won’t travel at all in the month of December, so we’re excited to be home and playing in front of our fans.”
Matt Faye is a Sports Reporter and Columnist for the Beaumont Enterprise. Contact him at MFaye@BeaumontEnterprise.com or on Twitter by clicking here.
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