Girls' Basketball: Ford's versatile effort carries Warriors

By Justin Hayes
Published in Sports on December 3, 2016 10:21 PM

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Defense. Stifling defense. 

The Eastern Wayne varsity girls basketball team used the concept to create maximum chaos on Friday evening, forcing a staggering 29 turnovers in a 54-42, non-conference victory over neighboring 2-A foe Greene Central. 

In a word, the lady Warriors were relentless. 

The blue-and-gold applied pressure throughout a frenzied opening stanza, forcing the Rams out of their sets and into a manic, turnover-prone footrace. At quarter's end, Greene Central had more giveaways (six) than it did made field goals (five). 

And at each turn, there was Treycie Ford. 

The senior autographed any and all portions of the Eastern Wayne attack, playing passing lanes with poise, crashing the glass and launching the Warriors' fast break.

 She also settled matters offensively, exploiting the middle of Greene Central's zone and helping her mates find easy looks around the rim. 

As if that weren't enough, she buried two triples -- part of a smooth, comprehensive effort that drew praise from head coach Michael Gurganus. 

"Treycie's a captain, a perfectionist -- and you can tell that in a game," the coach said of his point guard. "She comes to practice every day and works hard... a great leader." 

At the break, Eastern Wayne led 30-18.

The EW defensive strings cinched tightly in the third quarter, limiting the Rams to just eight points on three made field goals.

Sophomore guard Myesha Best warmed up offensively for the hosts, scoring six points and essentially salting matters with a four-point play as the period drew to a close. 

A parade of fouls defined the final eight minutes, causing both teams to shuffle personnel and survive a combined 16 trips to the charity stripe. EW persevered, however, and moved its record to a perfect 3-0 on the season. 

"We started knowing our angles and forced some turnovers," Gurganus said of his team's effort, "but we still have a ways to go. I'm proud of them."

Ford and Best each recorded 12 points for EW, and were joined by seven other players in the official scorebook. Kaliya Sutton and Aniyah Jones paced winless Greene Central with 13 and 11 points, respectively. 

The two teams face off again this Monday at Snow Hill. Tip-off is 6 p.m.