Jasmine Odom didn’t quite take over the game in the fourth quarter. But the sophomore on the South Shore girls’ basketball team definitely made her presence felt.
After what coach Anwar Gladden called a “mental lapse” in the second and third quarters, Odom was aggressive with the game on the line late. She scored eight of her 17 points in the fourth quarter and made 6-of-8 clutch free throws in South Shore’s 68-63 win against Paint Branch (Md.) on Monday at the Bergtraum Holiday Classic in Lower Manhattan.
“I had to,” Odom said of being aggressive. “My coach told me to control the ball.”
She did just that. Odom didn’t always finish when she got to the rim, but she was fouled four times and converted the necessary free throws to keep South Shore (8-1) ahead. The 5-foot-5 guard scored eight straight Vikings points in the fourth, two of which put her team ahead.
“She’s one of the best percentage foul shooters on the team,” junior guard Taylor Ford said. “I think she has confidence.”
In the first half, South Shore led by as much as 40-28 with 5:24 left in the second quarter. Gladden credited the Vikings’ ball movement with the strong play in the first half.
“We gotta do a better job of not playing so much 1-on-1,” the coach said. … “When we share the ball, it’s a different game.”
Added Lloyd: “We score more when we share.”
That seemed to cease a bit in the middle of the game. Paint Branch (6-1) went on a 10-0 run to cut the lead to two points with 1:39 left in the second. The Vikings went into the half with a 43-40 lead, but there was no doubt which team had momentum.
In the second half, there were seven lead changes, but South Shore showed its fortitude and pulled out a tough win against a solid out-of-town team. Lloyd had 15 points and Baytania Newman added 10 for the Vikings, who have only one loss on the season, to nationally ranked Whitney Young (Ill.).
James Madison-bound guard Tarik Hislop led Paint Branch with 18 points, sophomore Brene Mosely had 17 points and Florida International-bound center Khalilah Quigley added 15 points.
“They had players down low and strong guards,” Lloyd said.
That’s why it was such a solid win for South Shore, which will take on Mary Louis on Tuesday during the final day of the Bergtraum Holiday Classic. Gladden, who was trying to schedule St. Michael Academy this weekend, makes it no secret that he would play any team at any time.
“We want to play the toughest games possible,” he said, “to get ready for the playoffs.”
