Sparks head for girls basketball nationals

The 13-and-under St. Louis Sparks girls basketball team had to overcome an injury to a star player in last month's AAU district tournament. But, the team prevailed to win the tournament for the third year in a row.

The victory in the Ozark District Championship on Sunday, April 17, gave the Sparks a 54-0 record for the year. The win also earned the Sparks a spot in the AAU national tournament in Dayton, Ohio, in July 8-16.

In the district finals, the Sparks overcame a furious fourth quarter rally by the St. Louis Crusader team to prevail, 53-51.

Kalia Lahai-Pumagoi (left) and Breanna McLaughlin

The Sparks had a double-digit lead in the third quarter. Then, power forward Breanna McLaughlin sprained her right ankle and had to be carried off the court.

Breanna was very disappointed because her right ankle "is my only good ankle." She wears a brace on her left ankle, which has been injured several times.

But, in the end, it was the Sparks' strength inside that carried the team to victory.

Ebony Davis is a 5'10" forward for the Sparks. She was the team's leading scorer with 17 points and was strong on rebounding.

(l to r) Alneshia Day, Leslie Damper and Ebony Davis

Then, 5'9" forward Alneshia Day contributed 10 points. Also, during the fourth quarter, when the Crusaders were rallying, she helped the guards bring the ball up court against the press.

The Sparks were leading, 42-31, at the start of the fourth quarter. The winners scored just enough to win when a 3-point basket by the Crusaders at the buzzer cut the final margin to just two points.

Both teams did their best work when they worked the ball inside for shots close to the basket. In the end, the Sparks ability to rebound was the deciding factor in the game.

The district tournament was a double-elimination meet. The Sparks entered the final game as the only unbeaten team. If the Crusaders had won the game, the two teams would have lined up to play another game that evening.

Sparks Coach Claude Ussery has had outstanding success with his 13-and-under team. In addition to winning the district meet for three consecutive years, players such as Day and guard Kalia Lahai-Pumagoi are just seventh graders.

They and other younger players will form a good nucleus for next year's team. One of the girls who won't be on the Sparks team next season is 14-year-old Leslie Damper. But, she's got her eye on another goal for next year.

She will enter Hazelwood East High School next year and is looking forward to playing on the basketball team. That will give her a chance to be on the same team as her sister, Heather, who will be a senior next year.

All of the girls have identified things they need to work on to become better players.

Alneshia thinks that her dribbling and rebounding are the best parts of her game. But, she plans to work more on her ability to dribble with her left hand to allow her more versatility.

Kalia said the areas of her game that need improvement involve more than just basketball skills. She said, "I need to work on my attitude and behavior and need to listen to Coach more."

She admitted Coach Ussery is "always right" but that she often doesn't listen. However, the coach said, "She's getting better."

Breanna McLaughlin said her best strength is playing defense. But, she said she needs to work more on her shooting and her ability to block out for rebounding.

Ebony Davis said her height helps her block shots but she also needs more practice on "post moves" and free throw shooting.

Leslie Damper said she can dribble with either hand but needs to "keep my head up while dribbling to see the court better."

Ebony said the whole team will need to play more as a team in the nationals. She said her worst experience this year "was when we almost lost a game because we weren't playing as a team."

The girls all are looking forward to playing in the nationals again this year. They said they consider qualification for last year's nationals as their best basketball experiences.

Ebony was more specific. She said her best basketball experience was "when he won a game in overtime at nationals last year."

The girls are hoping to have another bunch of "best experiences" in July this summer.

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