Notching their best win of the season, the Labette Cardinals women took down the Allen Red Devils, 65-50, on Wednesday night at home.
“We just took defense seriously tonight,” Labette head coach Gabby Cortez said. “We applied some adjustments to our zone. I have a bunch of kids that have a bunch of heart and grit that want to get it done. The Great Eight is what I’m calling them.”
Allen was limited to 25% shooting from the floor while the Cardinals connected on 43% of their shots.
“They just flew around,” Cortez said. “We watched a bunch of film and walked through their offense in practice. They saw the adjustments we needed to make. We knew where we needed to be. They did what they needed to do.”
Ahmani Klabunde led Labette with 21 points on 8-of-19 shooting, including 4-of-10 from deep.
“She’s the motor,” Cortez said. “I want to get her more time on the bench to get her a rest. But then I’ll miss her on the court.”
Aubreyanna Yelverton added 15 points while Jon’qora Moore chipped in 10.
Labette played with its full arsenal of eight players for the first time in KJCCC play.
“I never realized how important it was to have eight players on a team,” Cortez said. “It’s what we needed. It gives the rotation more time to rest. They’ve done a great job of breaking the quarters to five-minute increments. That allows them to give it their all.”
Jalynn Weakley led Allen with 15 points.
Up next
Labette hosts undefeated, top-ranked Johnson County on Saturday.
“We have to lock in with eight healthy players,” Cortez said. “We have to focus on recovery. And we have to lock in defensively. We have to get stops. That’ll put us in a good spot to compete with Johnson.”
