Banks County led wire to wire on Friday night at home to beat Washington County, 57-44 to reach their third straight Elite 8. The win also was the 20th straight for the #3-ranked Lady Leopards (23-5).
Banks held an early lead throughout the low-scoring first. Ryleigh Murphy had a pair of clutch 3-pointers, and Cannon Collier got a shot to go just before the horn to stake Banks to a 6-point lead at 13-7.
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Ryleigh Murphy struck again with a shot from downtown late in the second, and that was followed by an electric bucket plus the foul by Ansley Moore, padding the lead to 11. Janakate Gibson and Collier had more timely buckets, as the Lady Leopards led 28-17 at the half.
The home team kept the pace as Reese Murphy drained a triple to lead off the third. She had a give-and-go a few moments later for a 16-point lead, forcing a Washington County (19-9) timeout. It ballooned to 18 before the Lady Hawks chiseled into the deficit down to 11. Maggie Irvin got a 3-point play opportunity as Banks led 41-27 going into the final period.
Reese Murphy sent in a shot from beyond the arc to kick off the fourth, but Washington wouldn’t go quietly, as they went on a run with just over four to play to whittle it down to a 10-point deficit. Ryleigh Murphy and Reese Murphy both drilled 3-pointers to provide some welcomed insurance as the girls kept the pedal to the metal the rest of the way.
Ryleigh Murphy led with 20 points, including six shots from downtown, and Reese Murphy collected 17 with four threes of her own. Moore finished with seven, Collier five, Gibson four, and two each for Marleigh Dale and Irvin.
