The Gazette
It’s not like Brendysha Liner was a complete unknown commodity for Goose Creek’s girls basketball team but she’s definitely been in the shadows of the Lady Gators' more prominent players, N’Dea Bryant and Ashley Fields.
The senior post player took a step outside that shadow in the third round of the playoffs, pouring in a season-high 21 points to power Goose Creek past Ridge View 62-51 on Monday night at GCHS.
Bryant added 13 points, Fields 11 and Brittani Doctor 10 for Goose Creek, which will face Orangeburg-Wilkinson on Friday in the Lower State finals.
Liner was averaging seven points and had not scored more than 16 points in a game this season. Last season, after transferring from Hanahan, she averaged just 3.8 points a game.
“I told her (Bryant and Fields) would create a lot of baskets for you,” GCHS coach Tim Baldwin said. “All you’ve got to do is make the layups, and that’s what she did. … I haven’t given out a game ball since I’ve been here but I gave it to her tonight.”
Ridge View (20-7) created pressure up top with their guards and Liner was the beneficiary of drop down passes from Bryant and Fields right under the rim. She had 13 points in the first half as the Lady Gators led 34-21.
Goose Creek built the lead to as many as 17 points in the third quarter before Ridge View closed to within 45-37 on Jontay Mitchum’s 3-pointer with 6:20 remaining.
But the Lady Gators (24-4) surged back ahead by 16 points over the next two and a half minutes. Mikayla Tanner nailed a 3-pointer from the corner and Doctor made a pair of driving layups to make it 53-37 with 3:54 left.
All that remained in doubt was finding out the Lady Gators’ next opponent. Orangeburg-Wilkinson (17-5) knocked off Colleton County 52-39 on Monday.
Friday night’s state semifinal game at Florence Civic Center will mark a rematch of the 2009 Lower State final, won by the Bruinettes at Woodland High School.
“They’ve got a great program,” Baldwin said. “Coach (Josh) Staley has done a good job with them. They’ve got (6-4 post player Nyilah Jamison-Myles) that has signed with Clemson. That’s definitely going to create some matchup problems with us but we’ve got to go on and play hard. Right now, it’s about who wants it more. If we give the same effort that we gave tonight, I’ll feel good about Friday night, at least giving us a chance to win.”
The Lady Gators have played in the last two title games, winning one over Spring Valley two years ago and losing to the Lady Vikings last season.
Coach Baldwin’s words figure to be the same on Friday as they were on Monday.
“I told them before the game that big-time players are meant to step up in big-time games,” Baldwin said.
And it was Liner’s turn on Monday.
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