Down double digits to Baylor early in the second half Thursday, Cleveland girls’ basketball coach Mindy Kiser continued to urge her team to attempt a comeback one possession at a time. As the Lady Blue Raiders listened, with each possession they inched closer.
In the final moments, sophomore Norah Berry inched them ahead for good.
Berry drained a 3-point shot from the right wing with 21 seconds remaining, and Cleveland won 35-34 to advance to the girls’ final of the Times Free Press Best of Preps tournament at Arts & Sciences. Kiser’s Lady Raiders will face GPS tonight at 7.
The Lady Red Raiders (3-3) seemed to be in control of the game. Amber Howard and Mary Ellen Williams were scoring; Megan Ausdran was controlling the boards. A minute and a half into the third quarter, Howard scored on a putback to make it 27-14 and prompt Kiser to call a timeout.
“She just told us we were better than that,” Berry said. “We just needed to stick together and not rush shots.