Issues with turnovers and rebounding came back to haunt the Lady Tiders in the worst possible time as Minden fell to Ellender 69-52 in the second round of the playoffs.
“Our kids competed and played hard,” Minden head coach Jacob Brown said. “We got more stops than it showed. Just gave away turnovers and second-chance opportunities.”
Ellender jumped out to a 22-9 lead after one quarter.
“A lot of our mistakes weren’t on the initial possession,” Brown said. “It was the second or third chances that got us.”
Ellender bombed away from three and took advantage of Minden mistakes to take a 39-28 lead into halftime.
“They played at a pace that we didn’t need to be at,” Brown said. “They’re good at that. They force you to get at that pace.”
Janiya Reed led Minden with 20 points and finished her career in two seasons with over 800 total points scored.
“Our girls played their tails off,” Brown said. “We’ve never questioned how hard these girls play.”
Shakayla Carter finished with 18 points and Jazz White had seven.
“I’m so thankful for our community to have come out and create a great environment for us,” Brown said.