The breakdown: Smyrna girls secure region berth with win over Siegel

Smyrna’s girls basketball team locked up a Region 4-AAA berth and a trip to the District 7-AAA semifinals with a 55-37 win over Siegel Friday evening at Blackman High School.

The Lady Bulldogs (18-9) advanced to Saturday’s semis against No.1-ranked Riverdale at 2 p.m.

Smyrna outscored Siegel 17-5 in the second quarter and never looked back.
Here is a breakdown of the game:

Smyrna girls 55, Siegel 37

Records: Smyrna 18-9; Siegel 4-21

The skinny: Smyrna proved to be too athletic and too big for Siegel. The two teams weren't nearly as comparable as the No. 4 and 5 seeds would normally suggest. Tennessee Tech signee Keisha Brady and Tyra Hughes combined to score the first 24 points for the Lady Bulldogs, who pulled away in the second quarter.

Turning point: The second quarter proved to be the difference. Siegel trailed just 15-11 after one quarter and cut the advantage to 15-13 early in the second. That's when the Lady Bulldogs went on a 14-2 run to take control of things. Back-to-back Hughes layups — one on a steal — sparked the rally as Smyrna led 32-16 at halftime and never looked back.

Leading scorers: Smyrna: Keisha Brady 19, Tyra Hughes 14; Siegel: Morgan Pepela 17 (including five 3-pointers).

Quotable: "We pressed a little bit (in the second quarter), and that sped the game up. We wanted to go to our post players more. We know that's a plus for us. Sometimes you don't play as well in your first (tournament) game, and then you bring your A-game in the next game. Maybe we'll do that (Saturday)." - Smyrna coach Bud Brandon

Reach Cecil Joyce at cjoyce@dnj.com or 615-278-5168 and on Twitter @Cecil_Joyce.