GAMES
RANKINGS
Dulles senior guard Peyton Overton scored 29 points and grabbed 15 rebounds Tuesday to lead the Vikings to the regional tournament for the first time since 2008-2009.
Overton leads Dulles to 1st regional semifinal since ’09
KATY—Late during Tuesday’s Class 6A Region III quarterfinal against Tompkins, Dulles senior guard Peyton Overton addressed her teammates.
“We’ve been here before, y’all!” Overton bellowed. “We’ve been here before!”
The veteran team, with a roster of 10 seniors, certainly has. Adversity is no stranger to these Vikings. Trials are embraced as much as the triumphs.
And Tuesday was a definitive triumph.
Overton talked the talk and then strutted the walk, scoring six of her team-high 29 points in overtime to lead Dulles to a 64-59 win over Tompkins at the Merrell Center in a rematch of last year’s regional quarterfinal.
Peyton Overton triple. She\u2019s 3-5 from deep, has 11 points and seven rebounds already. #txhshoops @DullesGBB @DHS_Vikingspic.twitter.com/hRZzqOgaKI— Dennis Silva II (@Dennis Silva II) 1645581387
The Falcons, which ended their year 35-4, won that round. But the Vikings exacted revenge, and in doing so punched their ticket to the regional tournament for the first time since 2008-2009.
Dulles (27-6) plays Summer Creek at 7:30 p.m. Friday at the Merrell Center in the regional semifinal.
“Most of us are seniors, so this is our last ride,” said Overton, who added a game-high 15 rebounds. “We want it even more. It was a game that was an exact repeat from last year, and that hurt so bad. It was tough last year. We didn’t want to go down in the third round again. We made it happen.”
The game was a back-and-forth hurrah, with Overton pacing Dulles and junior guard Macy Spencer (33 points) leading Tompkins.
Both players showed off terrific shooting and scoring skills. Spencer made nine two-point baskets, all nine of her free throw attempts, and two 3-pointers. Overton made four two-point baskets, nine of 10 free throws, and four of seven 3-point attempts.
Peyton Overton is going off tonight. She\u2019s got 19 for @DullesGBB. #txhshoops @DHS_Vikingspic.twitter.com/iB2DmVYh3H— Dennis Silva II (@Dennis Silva II) 1645582969
“I was just attacking the gaps and involving my teammates as well,” said Overton, who entered Tuesday averaging 10.3 points this season. “As a team, we were seeing where they were coming from and just finding the open man.”
With senior guard Dai Dai Powell, the team’s second-leading scorer, having a rare off game offensively with three points, Overton was huge for the Vikings.
“Any one of these girls can have a lights-out night,” coach Christina Jamerson said. “For Peyton, tonight was her night. It’s awesome to see her step up. We know when someone may be off, someone else will step up. That’s what I’m so proud of about these girls. I love the fact that they step up for each other.”
Tompkins’ Bella Riggan put the Falcons up, 46-45, on an offensive putback with 2:20 left in regulation. Overton hit one of two free throws with 1:57 left to tie it up.
With 15.3 seconds left, Spencer found senior guard Brooklynn Nash wide open for a layup to put Tompkins ahead, 48-46. After a timeout, Dulles went the length of the floor.
A broken play ended with senior guard Nya Threatt delivering a quick, heads-up pass to a diving Alima Diop for the game-tying lay-in as time expired.
Wow. Alia Diop! We\u2019re going to OT. Crazy game. 48-48. #txhshoops @DullesGBB @DHS_Vikings @FBISDAthleticspic.twitter.com/517E4Tc2gX— Dennis Silva II (@Dennis Silva II) 1645585091
“We had a totally different play in mind,” said Threatt, who had 17 points, seven rebounds, and five steals. “The play was to try and get it to Pey, but it didn’t work out that way. So, we kind of just scrambled at the end, and we were able to make it count. I was just trying to get it to the open person. I saw Ali wide open.”
Dulles held off an overtime rampage from Spencer, who scored nine of Tompkins’ 11 points in the extra session. The Vikings got scoring in overtime from four players, whereas the Falcons had two players score in the OT.
“It’s easy for us to play together,” Threatt said. “We’ve all been playing together a long time now. We do a good job of keeping our composure and we’re able to get it.”
Free-throw shooting proved crucial down the stretch for the Vikings, who hit 12 of 13 in the four-minute overtime.
“We got a chance to keep fighting and we got a chance to prove ourselves,” Overton said. “That’s what we did.”
Overall, Dulles made 31 of 40 free throws. Tompkins made 14 of 18.
“I told them all the same thing,” said Jamerson, in her first season at the helm of Dulles. “Play aggressive, play smart, play together, play hard, play together, and play to win. And have fun.”
The Vikings did. And the reward is going somewhere they have not been in 13 years as a program.
“We want it so bad and we’re going to keep fighting,” Overton said. “That’s all we know.”
Dulles took down the reigning Region III-6A champs on Thursday, upending Cy-Creek in their area playoff game at the Merrell Center in Katy.
Dulles uses defense to knock off reigning regional champ Cy-Creek
KATY—Almost as soon as she took over Dulles’ girls basketball program last summer, Christina Jamerson, who moved to Sugar Land from San Antonio for the job, pored over film of the Vikings’ games from last season.
It didn’t take long for her to see what the rest of Region III-6A already knew.
“It’s so much fun to watch them play defensively,” Jamerson said. “I love to pressure, especially when you have the girls that we do. I’m just so happy they’ve bought in. That fullcourt man (defense) … it’s fun seeing them get after it. They’re trusting me, and I’m trusting them.”
Defense was Dulles’ knockout punch Thursday evening as it took down two-time defending Region III-6A champ Cy-Creek, 55-42, in their area playoff game at the Merrell Center. Behind the speed of senior point guard Nya Threatt and the length of senior guard Dai Dai Powell, the Vikings (26-6) forced 24 turnovers and took advantage of their quickness and athleticism in the open court.
It’s the earliest Cy-Creek (20-11) has been eliminated from the playoffs since the 2013-14 season.
“Get on the ball. Don’t give them any space. Play as aggressive as we can,” said Threatt, who had a game-high 21 points to go with seven rebounds and eight steals. “We trust each other. Everyone can make a play.”
How is this year’s Vikings defense better than last year’s?
“We want it more this year,” said Threatt, one of 10 seniors. “So, we’re going to get after it.”
Jamerson didn’t like the way her team came out defensively in its four-point bi-district playoff win over Katy on Monday. So, her demand for round two was simple: pressure the ball.
Create something defensively. The Vikings did, forcing eight turnovers in the first half and then pumping up the juice in the second half, forcing 16.
“We’re working on getting more aggressive,” Jamerson said. “The last game, we didn’t come out as strong as we wanted to, so we wanted to strike first and get after it. This is 0-0. One-and-done. So, I feel like the girls are buying into what they have to do to get those steals and cause those turnovers.”
Aside from Threatt and Powell, Jamerson has a plethora of players capable of wreaking havoc defensively. More importantly, she’s aware of who can’t do what.
Because of that, players are hardly ever out of position, or in a role they’re apprehensive about.
“If I know certain players aren’t able to do certain things defensively yet, I’m not just going to put them out there and watch them fail,” Jamerson said. “I want to set up my players for success. Players like (senior) Jakiya Thompson, knowing she can lock down. (Senior) Alia Diop with blocks. (Junior) Sam (Pinkney).”
Cy-Creek struggled to get much of anything going offensively. The Cougars missed eight of 10 3-point attempts, half of their 12 free throw attempts, and failed to score in double figures in the second and fourth quarters.
Dulles wasn’t much better shooting-wise offensively, but because of all the takeaways, it generated more chances.
Dulles poses for a team photo after its area playoff win over Cy-Creek on Thursday.Dennis Silva II | VYPE Media
Powell had seven rebounds and eight steals to go with 10 points. Thompson had four steals. Diop had eight points, four rebounds, and two blocks. Senior Peyton Overton had four rebounds and four steals to go with seven points.
The Vikings never backed down from the Cougars. They asserted their will early and often, and controlled the game’s tempo from the start, when they jumped out to a 12-0 lead.
“We didn’t treat them any different than we do any other team,” Threatt said. “We just wanted to get the win.”