Indians rally past Tigers for 44-25 win

Jackson's girls basketball team was held to 10 points and only three field goals in the first half of Thursday night's game against rival Central at Central High School.

The Indians snapped out of their offensive funk in the third quarter, outscoring Central 17-5 in the quarter en route to a 44-25 win.

"I think our defense helped our offense," Jackson coach Sam Sides said of his team's performance after halftime. "We changed some things and finally made some shots."

Jackson (11-2) actually started the game hot from the field, jumping out 7-0 on a pair of 3-pointers from guard Jennifer Ferrell. But the Tigers responded, holding Jackson scoreless for a stretch of nearly eight minutes. Central (2-11) scored nine points during that stretch to open up a 9-7 lead.

"You've got to give them credit; they're hard to score on inside," Sides said of Central. "When we did get the ball in there, we weren't able to finish our shots."

Central maintained a 15-10 halftime lead before Jackson's offense came to life in the third quarter. Ferrell and Kelly Loos hit 3-pointers early, tying the score 16-16. Kylie Werner's only basket of the game gave Jackson the lead for good at 18-16 with 5:40 left in the third quarter.

Central could not respond to Jackson's offensive barrage and turned the ball over several times early in the quarter. Jackson's third and fourth 3-pointers of the quarter, by Katie Loos and Ferrell, gave the Indians a 30-20 lead by the end of the period.

"In the third quarter they turned up the defensive intensity and we turned the ball over," Central coach Amy Blattel said.

Jackson only made one field goal in the fourth quarter, but a 12-for-12 performance from the free-throw line helped the Indians cruise to the win. Ashley Bartels led Jackson with 14 points, including a 10-for-12 performance from the free throw line, and Ferrell added 12.

Ferrell said she wasn't surprised by Central's strong showing early on.

"Cape's always ready to play us," she said. "They're going to bring whatever they have."

Central was led by Megan McDonald's 15 points. The Tigers, who have lost four straight, will try to get back into the win column on Saturday when they host Clearwater.

"I just need to have some other kids step up who can handle the ball," Blattel said. "I think we played much better than the last couple of games. Jackson's just a good team, and you can't turn the ball over against a team like them and stay in the game."