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Wixon: Duncanville girls assert dominance in 64-40 win over Cy Falls; set for 5A final Saturday night

AUSTIN — At every position, Duncanville was a little quicker than Cypress Falls on Friday. In every facet of the game, Duncanville was a little better than its Houston-area opponent.

But on the scoreboard, there was nothing little about the difference in Duncanville’s 64-40 victory at the Frank Erwin Center. The Class 5A state semifinal was a mismatch from the start.

Or at least from the 3:36 mark of the first quarter. That’s when Cy Falls, which had won 20 straight games, grabbed a 9-7 lead with a three-point play.

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Then came the Duncanville onslaught. It started with seven straight points to end the first quarter and then snowballed in the second quarter. By halftime, Duncanville (40-1) had scored 28 of the last 30 points in a defense-fueled avalanche that buried Cy Falls (37-3).

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It was Duncanville 35, Cy Falls 11. Game over. Time for Duncanville to look ahead to Saturday’s 5A final, in which it will face the winner of San Antonio Reagan and Spring Dekaney, who played in Friday’s late semifinal.

“We knew we had to take them out with defense,” Duncanville coach Cathy Self-Morgan said of Cy Falls.

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Duncanville, which has won 27 straight, takes out everyone with defense. The Pantherettes contest every pass, cut off every driving lane to the basket and seem to win the chase to every loose ball.

And when Duncanville forces a turnover, it usually turns it into points. By halftime, Duncanville had scored more points off turnovers (15) than Cy Falls had scored in the game. For the game, Duncanville scored 27 points off Cy Falls’ 23 turnovers.

“If we play defense,” Duncanville guard Empress Davenport said, “then the offense just falls into place.”

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And the opponent usually falls apart. During a 21-0 run to close the first half, Duncanville scored on 3-pointers by Ariel Atkins and Davenport, fast-break layups by Morgan Bolton and Tasia Foman, a rebound putback by Alisha Spearman and two baskets in the paint by Antoina Robinson off crafty passes by Davenport.

Duncanville did just about everything right during that stretch. But during the entire game, Duncanville played defense about as well as it can be played. There just weren’t many open shots for Cy Falls.

“When we did get open,” Cy Falls guard Sadalia Ellis said. “They blocked it.”

Cy Falls guard Loryn Goodwin, who has signed with North Texas, led all scorers with 19 points. But Duncanville, as usual, overwhelmed its opponent with depth. Atkins and Bolton each scored 15, Foman had 12 and Davenport, a Texas signee, had eight points and six assists.

“They’re really athletic,” Goodwin said of the Pantherettes. “They go hard to the boards. They go hard all the time.”

And now, Duncanville is going to the state title game for the first time since losing to Spring Westfield in the 2004 championship. Duncanville expects a much happier final day in Austin this time.

“We have a lot of passion right now,” Bolton said. “We all feel that we want it, and nobody can take it away from us. We know our destiny, and we’re going to fight until the end.”