Wanting to be unwanted

The team that nobody wants to play at tournament time; that’s the team that the Hot Springs Lady Savage Heat want to be.

Coach Richard Jackson and his promising, young Savage Heat split District 14C conference games last week, waylaying Two Eagle River 54-17 in Pablo Thursday before returning home and falling to the Arlee Scarlets 53-31 in Hot Springs Saturday.

Now 1-1 in 14C action and 2-2 overall, Hot Springs teams wrap up play for 2017 with non-conference games in Missoula versus Valley Christian Thursday and at Mission Friday.

Jackson likes what his team has been giving him so far and expects they will only get better with time and experience.

“You have to remember we are very young and that we are only going to get better,” he said. “We want to be that team that nobody wants to play by the time the tournaments roll around, and I think we have the players to do that.”

The Scarlets may have gotten past the Heat with relative ease this time, but Jackson expects his team to become an evolving concern as the season progresses.

“Arlee is looking like the toughest team in our district right now,” he said. “If you shut down one player, another can pick up the slack. And they really shot the lights out against us last week.”

Alyssia Vanderburg led Arlee to the win with 20 points and Nellie Desjarlais chipped in with 16.

Twins Sage and Sydney Jackson led Hot Springs with 10 and nine points each, respectively, Stacy Gray added six, Brianna Gray five and McKenzie Cannon one.

Coach Jackson found out later that Cannon was suffering from a case of strep throat. “I was wondering why she didn’t play all that well and then she comes to practice Monday and tells me she has been diagnosed with strep throat,” he said, “and that explained a lot.”

Cannon bombed in 18 points to lead the win over Two Eagle, Lizzy Fisher and Sydney Jackson added 10 each, Sage Jackson five, Stacy Gray four, Brianna Gray, Lexi DeTienne and Danielle Graham two apiece and Breeze Clark one.

Malanya Carpentier led Two Eagle with eight points.