Plano East sophomore Arianna Robinson scored 51 points across two games last week, both wins. Photo by Andy Redmond / C&S Media
By David Wolman
The Plano East girls basketball team was an unstoppable force during the first half of District 6-6A play, a stretch that saw the Lady Panthers win all eight games.
Through two games in the second half of district play, Plano East has shown no signs of a letdown.
The Lady Panthers improved their district mark to 10-0 after cruising to a 79-28 road victory over crosstown rival Plano West last Friday.
Arianna Robinson had 28 points to lead a balanced scoring attack. Nariah Witherspoon finished with 15 points. Julia Eiwo added 11 in the victory, followed by nine from Madeline Bankhead.
Earlier in the week, Plano East defeated Princeton 62-37 to keep its perfect district record intact.
After a close first quarter, Plano East’s defense put the clamps on Princeton’s offense. The Lady Panthers blitzed Princeton with a 23-3 scoring run in the second quarter to take a commanding 41-13 halftime lead. Plano East led 18-10 at the end of the first quarter.
Robinson poured in 23 points to pace Plano East, followed by nine from Witherspoon, seven by Bankhead and six from Hailey Reed.
Plano East, ranked No. 20 in last week’s Texas Association of Basketball Coaches Class 6A state poll, improved to 22-7 overall.
The Plano East boys also won both of their games last week — a 58-47 victory over Princeton and a 53-41 win against Plano West — following back-to-back losses to state-ranked Allen and McKinney.
The Panthers seized control early against Plano West, opening last Friday night’s game with an 18-8 first-quarter run. Plano East led 30-16 at halftime.
Plano West cut into the deficit by outscoring the Panthers 15-9 in the third quarter, trimming the lead to 39-31. However, Plano East finished strong, holding an 18-10 scoring edge in the fourth quarter to pull away.
Alijah Plummer scored a game-high 14 points to lead Plano East, followed by 13 from Moustafa Abualneel, eight by RJ Robinson and seven each from Alex Brewington and Jayden Parker.
Plano East (20-6, 6-2) faced a tougher battle against Princeton.
Princeton used a 19-15 scoring run in the third quarter to overcome a 24-20 halftime deficit and forge a 39-39 tie heading into the fourth quarter. Plano East regrouped and outscored Princeton 19-8 in the final period.
Brewington led the Panthers with 13 points, followed by 11 from Plummer, eight from Keagan Ho and six each from Robinson and Jayden Parker.