The Lady Grizzlies avenged a pair of earlier losses to Central with a 39-29 non-conference victory over the Lady Tigers on Tuesday night at Bryant Reeves Fieldhouse.
Gans used balanced scoring, 53-percent shooting from the floor and an improved effort on defense to get past Central.
The visitors had scorched the Lady Grizzlies for 70 points in a blowout win at Gans in the Sequoyah County Tournament two weeks earlier. Gans head coach Tammy Sparkman said slowing the tempo of the game was a big factor in her team's success on Tuesday night.
"The girls were very patient on offense. We slowed Central down and played really good defense too," said Sparkman.
"We showed a lot of patience. It was a low-scoring game and we were able to take away their outside shooting. It was probably the most controlled game that we've played this year."
Sparkman admitted she was a bit concerned about her team's confidence going into the game.
"I definitely was," said Sparkman. "But by working the ball around, the girls saw what team play can do for you."
Senior post Randi Childers and sophomore guard Raegan Sparkman both pumped in 10 points to lead Gans. Lacey Allen added nine points, Megan Flurry six and Caree Douglas four. Childers also grabbed a team-best eight rebounds while Flurry dished out seven assists.
Sophomore Kayla Lattimore, who netted 22 in Central's county tourney win at Gans, was out of action after injuring her ankle the previous Friday in a double-overtime loss to Boynton.
"We had prepared for her, but that took away one of their outside shooters," said coach Sparkman. "We were in a 2-1-2 zone pretty much the whole game and we worked hard to take away their outside shooters."
Freshman Shelby Morgan led Central in scoring with 10 points, while Bunny Postoak added seven. Melissa Buckner and Cheyenne Grabe scored three each, Regan Ruark two, Jessica Walden two and Lacey Wallace two.
The Lady Grizzlies had set a team goal of outscoring their opponent in every quarter and were able to do so on Tuesday.
Childers netted five of her points in the first period to lift Gans to a 9-8 lead and Douglas had four in the second stanza to help the Lady Grizzlies to a 19-15 halftime advantage.
Sparkman's six points in the third quarter allowed Gans to push its lead to seven by the start of the fourth and the home team outscored Central 10-7 down the stretch.
The victory is believed to be the Lady Grizzlies' first win over Central since 1992 and Sparkman is hoping it will spark her team to a strong finish to the season.
Now 6-8, they play at Riverside Athletic Conference leader Porum on Tuesday.
"It's going to give us that boost going into the Porum game," said the coach. "That's going to be a tough one."
Central 57, Gans 51 (Boys)
The Tigers scored nearly half of their points from long-range on Tuesday night, hitting nine three-pointers in a non-conference win over Gans.
Casey Dillard led Central with a team-high 18 points and sank three of the Tigers' treys. Stevie Morris drilled four threes on the way to 13 points and Jamey Blank knocked down a pair while scoring eight.
Jose Tarin chipped in seven points, Tom Vogt six and Brenden Gentry five as the Tigers topped Gans for the second time this season.
Central wasn't the only team to benefit from the three-point shot. Senior guard Joe Grooms sank four treys and scored a game-high 24 points for Gans. Nick Woodruff added 12 points, Gary Southern eight, Joe Brunk five and Kyle John two.
Gans led by two after the first quarter and was up 25-24 at halftime. Central, though, fought back to grab a 37-34 lead entering the fourth period.
