Centennial girls squad routs previously unbeaten Legacy

The names and faces change every season.

But one constant remains for Centennial’s girls basketball program: winning.

Even on a night when the Bulldogs didn’t put forth their best effort, it was still plenty good enough.

The 11-time defending Northwest League champions opened league play Monday by steamrolling host and previously unbeaten Legacy, 81-37.

But Centennial wasn’t razor sharp, committing 26 turnovers and giving up a handful of easy baskets in transition.

“It’s not a Superman suit,” Centennial coach Karen Weitz said. “The kids have to make the suit work, and kids don’t want to do that consistently enough. Some of them still take it for granted, which is frustrating. You have to earn what it’s about.”

Applying stifling pressure on both ends of the floor, the Bulldogs (3-0, 1-0) turned a 5-5 tie into a 25-7 lead in the span of 2 minutes, 45 seconds in the first quarter, effectively putting the game out of reach.

Seven Centennial players scored during that 20-2 run as the Bulldogs substituted liberally, always keeping fresh bodies on the floor.

“Being able to have numbers in this game, in this day and age, is key,” Weitz said. “It’s hard to find kids who just want to play basketball the way basketball should be played.”

Legacy (7-1, 1-1) never fully recovered, committing 35 turnovers and making only 14 of 58 shots from the field.

“We’re kind of similar teams so we both came out with the same grind mode,” Weitz said. “We got a few quick buckets, and we kind of surged ahead.”

Courtney Hayes led Centennial’s barrage with 20 points and nine rebounds. Ashley Klemz added 17 points, Jada Brown chipped in 11 points and 11 rebounds and Tamera Williams had 10 points and nine rebounds for the Bulldogs.

Neither Brown nor Williams, both sophomores, played on Centennial’s varsity last season.

Shakita Cox led the Longhorns with 11 points.