Lady Chiefs beat South Aiken, Bluffton to move to third round of state high school playoffs

The North Myrtle Beach Lady Chiefs opened the South Carolina High School League playoffs with an impressive 70-26 victory over visiting South Aiken last Tuesday at North Myrtle Beach. Thursday night the Lady Chiefs continued their impressive showing with a 49-33 win over #1 seed Bluffton and a third-round game on Monday.

Tuesday’s win over South Aiken began with the Lady Chiefs taking the opening tip and within seconds Jordan Berger hit a jump shot from the left side and it was 2-0. The two teams traded trips down the court before Daveona Hatchell scored two quick baskets near the 6:30 mark in the quarter for a 6-0 lead and South Aiken called timeout.

Following the stoppage in play the Lady Thoroughbreds still didn’t score as the North Myrtle Beach defense led to several steals but also some missed opportunities on offense. Jordan Berger rebounded a missed shot in at 4:21, then hit a free throw after a drive and a free throw for a 9-0 lead with 3:13 left. Hatchell had a steal and layup with 2:34 on the clock and Adaiah Vereen made two free throws with 2:31 remaining in the quarter.

With 1:18 left the Lady Chiefs went on a tear. Jenna Berger rebounded a shot in, then followed with another basket with sister Jordan assisting on both. Jordan Berger added a three–point play with :29 left and Jenna Berger benefitted from another Jordan Berger assist for a late basket and a 22-0 first quarter score.

The Lady Chiefs scored three times in the first minute of the second quarter as Jordan Berger had a layup, Hatchell hit a three from the left side and following another NMB steal, Jenna Berger laid it in with an assist from Ashanti White. That 29-0 lead was followed by the first point of the night by South Aiken with 6:16 left in the half.

The Lady Chiefs were outscored for the remainder of the half with several turnovers and a couple of missed shots slowing their offense. Baskets by Jordan Berger, Jermisha Moss, Jenna Berger and a Hatchell three-pointer from the right side kept the Lady Chiefs in control 39-13 at the half.

The offensive frustrations for South Aiken continued in the third quarter as they were completely stymied by the North Myrtle Beach defense and scored only four points in the quarter. The Lady Chiefs, meanwhile, after a somewhat slow start, got their first points on a steal and basket by Jenna Berger, quickly followed by a Hatchell basket, a three-point play by Jenna Berger with 4:50 left and a rebound basket by Adaiah Vereen for a 50-15 lead and 3:25 left in the quarter.

The Berger sisters score the remaining seven points of the quarter, with Jenna adding two baskets, one a three-point shot and Jordan adding two free throws with eleven seconds left and North Myrtle Beach led 57-17 going into the final quarter.

The first North Myrtle Beach points of the quarter came with 6:35 on the clock as Riley Vincent, following two missed shots, drove the baseline and was fouled, making one of two free throws. Vincent then hit a three from the right top of the key, Jordan Berger drove the lane for two points and Vincent hit her second three-point shot with 3:54 left and the Lady Chiefs led 66-21.

South Aiken continued their lack of scoring, with the Lady Chiefs defense cutting short most attempts to score points. Moss scored a layup near the three-minute mark and the last points of the night by North Myrtle Beach came on another layup by Jenna Berger with 1:23 on the clock, as she finished the game with 24 points. Jordan Berger and Daveona Hatchell each had 14 points in the Lady Chiefs first playoff win.

North Myrtle Beach coach Brooke Smith called the game “one of the better wins for us all season. We got off to a good start in the first quarter. We showed them some new defensive presses and we pushed hard. The usual scoring from the Bergers and Daveona Hatchell again really stepped up for us. In these last two games she has really played to her potential. We really meshed well and played as a team all night. I was happy to see it and am excited to see what happens in our next game,” Smith said.

North Myrtle Beach travelled to Bluffton last Thursday for their second round against the number one seed in their pairings. That game was moved up one night due to the state 4A individual wrestling tournament scheduled for Bluffton on Friday.

That didn’t seem to matter to the Lady Chiefs, who took up where they left off against South Aiken.  Adaiah Vereen hit a floater to give the Lady Chiefs a 2-0 lead. Jenna Berger hit two free throws and sister Jordan a layup to give the Lady Chiefs a 6-5 lead. Daveona Hatchell’s three-point play made it 9-5 and with the score 13-5 Bluffton called a timeout to talk things over.

Not much changed for the Bobcats after that. The Chiefs defense and Bluffton’s inability to shoot free throws allowed North Myrtle Beach to get easy baskets and when Hatchell closed the quarter with a three-pointer just before the buzzer, it was 23-7 and the Lady Chiefs were on their way to their second round victory.

The Lady Chiefs changed their offense in the second quarter as they went to a more deliberate half-court offense. North Myrtle Beach was able to use up almost two minutes of the second quarter before Ashanti White hit a long jumper for a 25-7 lead. North Myrtle Beach continued their ball-control play, still leading 27-11 with less than ninety seconds left in the half. Bluffton finally got their transition game going and hit a three-pointer and another basket in the last minute to cut the Lady Chiefs halftime lead to 27-16.

The Lady Chiefs opened the third quarter with a basket but both teams spent the next two minutes going up and down the court, with steals by both teams and missed offensive opportunities by both teams. With 5:45 left in the quarter Bluffton converted two free throws and cut the North Myrtle Beach lead to 29-19.

Both teams took unproductive trips up the court until Adaiah Vereen scored two quick baskets for a 33-21 NMB lead. The Lady Chiefs added five more points and held Bluffton scoreless to close the third quarter with a 38-21 lead.

The fourth quarter started slowly for both teams as the Lady Chiefs lead was 41-23 with 6:30 left in the game. Bluffton went on a 7-3 run as they tried to get back into the game, but the Lady Chiefs hit two quick baskets with just under four minutes left to lead 47-31.

North Myrtle Beach tried to control the tempo in the final two minutes, chewing up the clock as much as possible, while Bluffton was only able to make two free throws on offense and North Myrtle Beach walked out of the gym with a 49-33 victory and a third- round matchup with North Augusta Monday, Feb. 25, at North Augusta.  Daveona Hatchell was the leading scorer for the Lady Chiefs with 15 points and steady rebounding. Jordan Berger had 11 points, Jenna Berger 9 and Adaiah Vereen 8 points in the win.

Coach Brooke Smith called the victory a “hard-fought battle after a long road trip. The minute we arrived at the school the girls were focused and ready to play ball. They remained focused and worked hard from beginning to end. I am very proud of how well junior Daveona Hatchell is playing and reaching her potential as a crucial part of this program. We are looking forward to the third round of the playoffs as we take on repeating state title holder North Augusta,” Smith said.

Jenna Berger shoots, scores and is fouled during third quarter action against South Aiken last Tuesday in the Lady Chiefs 70-26 playoff win. Berger added a free throw for a 46-15 lead. The Lady Chiefs then travelled to Bluffton where they won their second playoff 49-33 and advanced to the third round of playoff action against North Augusta.