SOUTHLAKE — Southlake Carroll coach Teri Morrison knows where her team stands after a 50-36 victory against visiting Richland on Tuesday night.
“We’re the team to beat,” Morrison said. “Like always, you got to get the Dragon. I’m not trying to be confident, but that’s where we are.”
Southlake Carroll (17-9, 9-1 in district) emerged from a three-way tie and now sits alone atop the District 4-5A standings. Richland (20-7, 8-2) remains tied with Keller (17-12, 8-2) in second place.
Carroll point guard Kennedy Leonard kept Richland on its heels throughout the game, dribbling past her defender for easy drives and baskets. The sophomore, who was SportsDay’s Newcomer of the Year last season, finished with a team-high 19 points.
“She broke us down a few times,” Richland coach Kate Goldberg said. “But every time you bring someone over to help they’re going to hit that 3.”
Leonard scored four consecutive field goals to give Carroll a comfortable 26-16 lead midway through the third quarter. She worked in tandem with fellow guard and Boston College signee Kami Mickens, who added 15 points on five field goals and 5-of-6 free throw shooting.
Richland turned the ball over 27 times and struggled to find the basket. Destiny Nunley, a 6-foot senior forward who signed with Harvard, scored a game-high 27 points. The rest of the Richland squad was 2-for-21 from the field.
Nunley made 10 field goals and was 7-for-12 from the free throw line.
“We put Kami on [Nunley], and I thought she did a great job when you have a 5-5 kid,” Morrison said. “We changed defenses as much as we could.”
Carroll gave up only four points in the second quarter.
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