Liberty girls rip Green Valley

There have been somewhere in the neighborhood of 150 games in the history of Liberty’s girls basketball program.

When it comes to the Patriots’ memorable moments on the floor, Tuesday’s game might go at the top of a short list.

Liberty (14-3, 5-0 Southeast) played well in nearly every facet of the game and dominated defending Sunrise Region champion Green Valley en route to an 86-60 home win.

“We were just aggressive from the jump. We didn’t back down,” Liberty coach Quintin Lester said. “We attacked on offense, and we were solid on defense.”

Green Valley entered with a 15-1 record and won its 15 games by an average of 35.9 points, including a 95-80 victory over Liberty in a season-opening tournament.

The Gators had won 33 straight Southeast League games and hadn’t lost a league game since Feb. 6, 2007, against Tech.

And none of that mattered Tuesday.

After falling behind 15-10 and collecting its ninth team foul less than five minutes into the game, Liberty closed the first quarter on a 12-4 run and never trailed again.

The Patriots shot 31-for-67 from the field and outrebounded the Gators 59-40.

Liberty got fantastic contributions from its bench, sparked by Daynice Cochran, who had 20 points and nine rebounds.

 

“She wanted to show her team that she got her grit back,” Lester said. “She hadn’t had the effort the last couple of games and in practice, but she played well.”

Amanda Delgado had 15 points and Jade Washington 14 for the Patriots.

Jazmine Jarvis led the Gators with 23 points. Shavon Stevens and Danielle Christenson each added 11 for Green Valley, which shot just 21-for-63 from the field and 14-for-35 at the free-throw line.

 

“This is huge for their confidence,” Lester said. “They work really hard. There’s never a down day. But there is still a lot of games left. There’s a lot of work to do.”