By JON WEBB
GLASGOW — Glasgow coach Chris Crain has given Kelsey Greer a lot of responsibility. On Tuesday, she handled it with ease.
The freshman point guard scored 20 points and helped the Lady Scotties beat Edmonson County 49-35 to open their 2009-10 season.
“(Greer’s) basketball IQ is as good as it gets,” Crain said. “She does a good job handling the ball, and makes great decisions on the court.”
Glasgow apparently made several good decisions in the game. After a Whitney Williams layup gave Glasgow a 6-4 lead with less than three minutes to play in the first quarter, the Lady Scotties never trailed again, and led by as many as 15.
The game wasn’t without its challenges, though.
Edmonson County pulled within a field goal with 5:35 to play, but 10 combined points from Greer and junior Shelby Ray allowed Glasgow to pull away and preserve the win.
“I saw a lot of positives tonight,” Crain said.
And the positives started early for Glasgow.
Despite Edmonson striking first, field goals from Kennedy Bailey, Greer and Williams and a three-pointer from Ray gave the Lady Scotties a five-point lead with two minutes remaining in the first quarter.
The lead would increase at the start of the second, when Glasgow rattled off a 7-1 run to pull ahead 20-7.
Four consecutive points by Haley Perkins stretched the advantage to 11 points and a pair of free throws from Ray provided the Lady Scotties with their biggest lead of the night at 26-11.
To seemingly drive home the point, Greer ended the half with a bank-in three-pointer from the top of the key.
The Glasgow lead would nearly vanish in the third quarter.
Edmonson opened the half with seven unanswered points to pull within seven. A Perkins layup off a Ray pass ended the run, but Edmonson managed to cut the lead to four as the quarter closed.
“We went a little cold in the third,” Crain said.
The Lady Scotties suffered another third-quarter setback in the form of an injured Perkins, who twice had to leave the game due to what Crain called “severe leg cramps.” Crain said he didn’t consider the injury serious, however.
Glasgow returned to form in the fourth, despite the setbacks.
Greer scored eight and Ray four in the final frame to help close out Edmonson and give Glasgow its first win in its first game.
Aside from Greer’s 20, Ray chipped in nine points, while Williams scored six. Even with missing all of the fourth quarter, Perkins nearly compiled a double-double, finishing with six points and eight rebounds.
Rebounding still was a problem Tuesday night, with Glasgow allowing several Edmonson offensive boards.
Crain said rebounding was one of his team’s few shortcomings.
“It’s one area we’ll have to improve,” he said. “It’s really the only complaint I have.
“We left it all on the floor tonight.”
