Southport used 3-point shooting to build a big halftime lead then fended off a late rally to stun host Greenwood 72-54 in girls basketball Tuesday.
The Cardinals entered the game with just three wins but were the better team all night. Andrea Vidaurre hit six first-half 3-pointers to lead Southport to a 40-25 halftime lead and ruin Greenwood’s senior night.
“Credit to Southport. We know they haven’t won a lot of games, but they play a really tough schedule,” Greenwood coach Bill Torgerson said. “I knew it was going to be a close game. I was hoping it was going to be closer.”
Greenwood (10-11) got off to a good start. Led by senior Leah Moore, the Woodmen led 10-9 late in the first quarter, but that quickly evaporated when the Southport 3-point show got under way.
[sc:text-divider text-divider-title=”Story continues below gallery” ]
Vidaurre led the charge for the Cardinals (4-14). The 5-foot-3 senior hit a 3-pointer early in the first quarter then bombed another as part of an 8-0 closing run that saw Southport take a 17-10 lead after one quarter.
Vidaurre contained her long-range shooting display in the second, knocking down four more triples, and Kyra Duncan added a three of her own as the Cardinals built a 40-25 lead at the half. Vidaurre finished the half with 20 points, 18 of those on 3s.
“She had a great night,” Torgerson said of Vidaurre. “Some of those were uncontested; we didn’t jump out on some ball screens.”
Greenwood opened the third quarter strong, getting a pair of 3-pointers of its own from Bailee Taft to cut the Southport lead to four (50-46) late in the stanza.
But that’s as close as the Woodmen got. Ashley Raisor hit a 3-pointer at the third-quarter buzzer to give Southport a 53-46 lead, and the Cardinals dominated the fourth, pulling away for the easy win.
“That 3 at the end of the third was huge. It was demoralizing,” Torgerson said. “Even though we tried to stay positive, it’s hard when you give up a shot like that.”
Moore, one of Greenwood’s three seniors, finished with a game-high 25 points in her final home game. Taft added 11 points.
Greenwood, which has now lost three games in a row and hasn’t won since the calendar turned to 2018, will try to get back on the winning track when it travels to Decatur Central on Friday for its final Mid-State Conference game of the season.
