CHARLESTON – In Wednesday’s Class AA quarterfinals of the 2020 Girls’ State Basketball Tournament at the Charleston Convention Center Coliseum, the first half of the Westside-Winfield game was a dream-come-true for the Lady Renegades, who made their first appearance at the Big Dance and the first for Westside since 2014.
That initial half dream-come-true turned into a basketball nightmare in the second half as the Lady Generals claimed an 81-38 victory over Westside.
Although the Lady Renegades never led in the initial half and tied the score only one time, the two teams played on even terms, with the Putnam Countians holding a 33-28 advantage at intermission.
After the break, the Lady Generals outscored Westside 48-10 in the nightmare of a second half to claim the decision.
Senior Z. Z. Russell set a new Class AA tournament single-game scoring record with her 41 points to top Winfield, and received twin digits scoring help from Emily and Lauren Hudson, who finished with 14 and 10 points respectively, as the Lady Generals improved to 24-2 on the campaign.
Seniors Leslie Bailey, Riana Kenneda and Makayla Morgan all tallied eight points for the Lady Renegades, who conclude their season 18-8.
For the game, Winfield converted 28-of-66 shots from the floor, or 42.4 percent, while the Lady Renegades could muster only 10-of-55 attempts, or 18.2 percent.
The Lady Generals will face PikeView when the State Tournament resumes, after having been suspended indefinitely on Thursday.