Lady Rebels run away from Bell City in league opener

It took the Midland Lady Rebels a while to get going, but once they did, it was all over for the Bell City Bruins Tuesday in the District 7-B opener for both teams.
The Lady Rebels (15-9, 1-0) rallied from a three-point halftime deficit by erupting for 35 points in the second half to walk away with a 51-30 victory over the Lady Bruins.
Bell City, ranked No 12 in Class B, fell to 13-8 overall and 0-1 in league play with the loss.
“We talked at halftime about the adjustments that needed to be made and we came out and slowly started to make them,” said MHS coach Christy Hebert, whose team scored just 16 points in the first half. “They (players) know what they have to do to come back alive and they did it.”
The rally was sparked by the Rebels’ defense, which forced the Lady Bruins into 16 second-half turnovers, including 10 in the final frame.
“We really turned it up on the defensive end in the second half,” said Hebert. “We knew we had to do something to get them rattled, so we just picked up the pressure and that really got us going.
“And offensively, we just slowed it down, stopped shooting the outside shot and started pushing the layups. Once we started scoring, the girls came back alive.”
The Lady Rebels’ defense was effective in the first half as well and forced 10 turnovers, but their offense struggled with numerous missed shots from beyond the arc as well as in the lane.
The two teams played to a 7-7 tie in the opening frame before the Bruins went on an 8-3 run to end the second quarter and took a 19-16 advantage at the break.
“We pushed the ball really fast up the court in the first half, but we rushed some shots and didn’t take our time to push it in or set up our offense,” said Hebert. “I was okay with that because we were getting down the court quick, but I just wish we would have made the adjustment a little faster.”
The Lady Rebels matched their first-half offensive production in the third quarter with a 16-point outburst to take a 32-28 advantage.
Forward Makenzie Oliver gave the hosts a spark with three big baskets in the lane and Marlie Boudreaux knocked down a pair of 3-pointers to help the Lady Rebels take a four-point lead at the end of the period.
“We have some post players that are working and getting a lot of playing time and all three of them are capable of doing big things,” said Hebert. “Mackenzie came up with some big rebounds and putbacks and she made some good choices on shots.”
The Lady Rebels put the game away in the final frame behind a smothering defense and 11 points from sophomore guard Gracie Miller.
The hosts forced 10 turnovers over the final eight minutes, limiting the Lady Bruins to just two points on a pair of free throws from Kate Leonards with just over five minutes remaining.
From there, the Lady Rebels went on a 15-0 run to end the game.
Miller scored nine of her game-high 23 points during the run.
“Gracie really played well,” said Hebert. “She struggled a little from outside, but when she saw she wasn’t hitting, she started forcing it inside and that’s what we need out of her.”
The Lady Rebels also got nine points from Caitlyn Boudreaux and eight from Oliver. Marlie Boudreaux and Myra Carlson rounded out the offense with six and five points, respectively.