The Jefferson City Lady Jays had a size advantage in Saturday's game against the Miller Career Academy Phoenix.
A definite size advantage they used to its full advantage.
"We thought we could take advantage of our height inside and when we did, good things happened," Jefferson City coach Brad Conway said after the Lady Jays rolled to a 58-24 win against the Phoenix in the Capital City Shootout at Fleming Fieldhouse. "Our inside game was really a positive for us."
The Phoenix didn't have a player taller than 5-foot-10, while the Lady Jays have four players listed at 6-0 or taller.
Jefferson City used that size advantage on the defensive end as well, employing a zone with big players on the outside to slow the outside shooting game for Miller Career Academy.
"That can be beneficial for us with our size," Conway said. "We still want to play man, but that zone can be a positive for us.
"It was very effective against their shooters."
Miller Career Academy's 24 points tied South Callaway in 2012 and Jamestown in 2016 for the lowest total in a girls game in the Shootout.
The Phoenix, who were just 3-of-16 on 3-pointers, scored the first five points of the game before the Lady Jays closed the first quarter on a 7-2 run to take a 14-10 advantage.
A four-point play by Hannah Nilges early in the second quarter started a 13-4 run by Jefferson City, who took a 34-16 lead into halftime.
Nilges hit a pair of 3-pointers on her way to 12 points in the first half.
"She can knock those shots down," Conway said. "I think they were keying on her and we need some other players to step up and hit from the outside as well."
The Lady Jays held the Phoenix to just one point in the first 6:30 of the third quarter on their way to a 50-20 lead heading to the fourth quarter, which was played with a running clock.
"The effort was really, really good," Conway said. "Tonight was solid. I don't know if it was our best game, but we did a lot of really good things."
Nilges finished with a game-high 14 points for Jefferson City. Micah Linthacum, selected as the game's Most Valuable Player, and Sarah Linthacum added 12 points as the Lady Jays concentrated on getting the ball inside.
"Those are high-percentage shots and we need to take them," Conway said.
Sarah Linthacum and Kara Daly pulled down eight rebounds each in the win.
Rayn Tally and Antuanae Garrett paced Miller Career Academy (5-3, No. 4 in Class 4) with six points each. Jayrissa Grayson had five of the 17 rebounds for the Phoenix.
Jefferson City (8-0), ranked No. 1 in Class 5, is back in action Wednesday against the Sedalia Smith-Cotton Lady Tigers. The JV game will start at 6 p.m., followed by the varsity contest around 7:30 p.m. at Fleming Fieldhouse.