Lady Grizz stop fifth-ranked Wyoming Indian in Ethete

The Rocky Mountain Lady Grizzlies continued to show they’re the team to beat in the 2A West Saturday as they traveled to Ethete and put away the fifth-ranked Wyoming Indian High School Lady Chiefs, 48-35.

The Lady Grizz had looked forward to a showdown with top-ranked Tongue River Friday in Cowley, but the game was cancelled, leaving Rocky with just the single game.

Defense was the key to the win, Rocky coach Justin Moss said, as the Lady Grizz held the home team to three points in the first quarter and the low teens in the second, third and fourth.

“We played good defense,” Moss said. “We got to their shooters. We started off man and got some steals early. We did a good job staying connected, each girl doing her job and trusting others to do theirs.”

Wyoming Indian came into the game having defeated Shoshoni 56-32 Thursday and Wind River 45-34 Friday, but the Lady Grizz thwarted the WIHS attack.

“Wyoming Indian was averaging 55 points per game, and we held them to 20 points below their average,” Moss noted. The Lady Chiefs hit just one of 21 shots from three-point range.

After the early Rocky lead, WIHS pulled to within two points at 13-11, Moss said, but Rocky outscored the Lady Chiefs 9-4 the rest of the second quarter to lead 22-15 at halftime. WIHS was still in the game after three, trailing 30-25, but Rocky pulled away in the fourth with an 18-10 edge.

“We did a good job controlling the game, I thought,” Moss said.

Junior Lauren Bassett led the Lady Grizz with 16 points and 17 rebounds for a strong double-double.

Senior Brittly Boettcher had one of her strongest games of the season, the coach said, scoring 15 points.

“Brittly is a very good downhill driver,” Moss said. “She attacks the hoop and plays much bigger than she is. She’s physical and she jumps well.”

Kaysie Cooley and Keylee Christiansen scored 8 points each, Shelby Wambeke 1.

“Kaysie and Keylee were able to hit some shots from the perimeter to help loosen up their defense, Moss noted.

Now a solid 13-5 on the season, the Lady Grizz will get back into conference action this week, hosting Greybull Friday at 4 (JVs) and 5:30 and traveling to Shoshoni Saturday for games at 1:30 and 3 p.m. The Lady Grizz edged Greybull 36-32 on January 24 and clobbered Shoshoni 53-19 on January 25.

“We’re back to conference play, and one of our goals is to sweep the conference,” Moss said. “We’re really familiar with each other, and both Jeff Hunt and Max Mills do a good job preparing their teams and getting ready for us.”