Clovis girls fall at Cleveland

RIO RANCHO — If Clovis' girls basketball team could bottle up the last three quarters of Friday night's road game against Cleveland, the Lady Wildcats would have been in great shape.

Unfortunately for them, though, all four quarters count.

Clovis fell into a big hole early and could never quite recover, ultimately losing 69-61 at Cleveland.

The Lady 'Cats (9-7) trailed 20-8 after one quarter, but lost the game by eight. You don't need a math degree from M.I.T., or even a calculator, to know what their slow start meant toward the eventual outcome.

"If we don't come out and have a bad start like that, we beat 'em by four the rest of the way," Clovis head coach Jeff Reed said.

Indeed, the Lady Wildcats won the remaining three quarters 53-49, which was at least an indication of how they can keep from getting discouraged, keep from checking out mentally, after falling behind by a substantial amount early. They stayed focused and played well after the first quarter.

But, it was the Lady Storm that managed to end their losing streak at four, in large part by reaching the foul line and capitalizing once they got there.

"They hit 24-of-30 from the free-throw line," Reed said. "That's pretty impressive."

That dreaded early start, though, was the Lady Wildcats' biggest hindrance.

"Shooting did us in for sure," Reed said. "And in the second half we had to get helter skelter scary and do whatever we had to do to make a comeback. We had the opportunities for sure. ... They held onto that (early) lead basically for the rest of the game. We just can't come out and get into a 12-point hole on the road against a team up here in Rio Rancho."

Clovis ended its three-game road trip at 1-2. The Lady 'Cats finally return to Rock Staubus Gymnasium on Tuesday, their first home game since Jan. 2 against Coronado. It will be Eldorado visiting for the start of the District 2-6A competition for both teams. Tipoff time is scheduled for roughly 7 p.m., following junior varsity action.