HANCEVILLE, Ala. – After downing Colbert County in the Sub-Regional, the Holly Pond Lady Broncos were back on the court competing in the Northwest Regional semifinals at Wallace State Wednesday morning. The Broncos trailed the Bobcats late in the fourth quarter but Madison Butts scored seven points in the final two minutes, including a pair of free throws with 13 seconds on the clock, to help lead Holly Pond to a 40-37 win and a spot in the Northwest Regional finals.
With her leading scorer unavailable today, Lady Broncos Head Coach Mary Lauren Hartline was proud of the way her team battled back after a slow start in the first half.
“We were here two years ago but on the other end of it and both these girls (Madison Butts and Maggie Nail) were there two sitting here literally in these exact same spots two years ago so I’m happy to be back here, especially with these two, that means something to me,” Hartline said. “I’m so proud of these girls. We’ve got a young team and y’all know we lost Ava Thomas Friday night and she’s been our leading scorer all year. We all depend on each other, but I know she’s someone the girls really depend on and look up to. The fact that we could overcome that adversity today, especially down the stretch, I just cannot say how proud I am of these kids. We practice for tough situations, but you can’t practice for what we did today.”
Maggie Nail and Madison Butts each knocked down three-pointers to give Holly Pond an early, 6-3 lead and Nail split a pair of free throws later in the period to keep the Broncos in front 7-5. Milly Huddleston scored to make it a 9-5 game with two minutes to play in the opening period. Millie McBee laid one in to give Holly Pond an 11-7 lead late in the first quarter, but Phil Campbell responded with a 6-0 run to finish the first and take a 13-11 lead into the second.
Points were hard to come by for both teams in the second quarter. The Bobcats pulled ahead 15-11 but Butts drove to the basket and scored with just over a minute remaining to trim the lead to 15-13. However, Phil Campbell was able to add one more basket in the final seconds of the half to take a 17-13 lead into the locker room at the break.
The Broncos came out firing early in the third quarter, taking a 23-17 lead with a pair of McBee baskets and a pair of three-pointers from Butts. Nail laid one in to keep Holly Pond ahead 25-20 with two minutes to play in the period but the Bobcats capped the third with a 7-0 run to take a 27-25 lead into the fourth.
Nail knocked down a three to give the Broncos a 28-27 lead early in the fourth quarter and after McBee split a pair of free throws, Sadie Nail scored inside to tie the game at 31 with just over four minutes remaining. After Phil Campbell retook the lead, Sadie Nail hit a couple free throws later in the period to cut the deficit to 35-33. That’s when Butts took over on the offensive end, draining a three with two minutes to play to bring the lead down to 37-36. Butts sank a pair of free throws with 41 seconds remaining to give the Broncos a 1-point lead and with just 13 seconds on the clock, Butts buried two more from the line to make it a 3-point game. Holly Pond held up on the defensive end to get the last stop it needed and secured its spot in the Elite Eight with a 40-37 win over the Bobcats.
Hartline was proud but not surprised to see Butts step up in the final minutes of the game to help lead the Lady Broncos to the win.
“Even though she’s only a sophomore, this is her third year on varsity and when I talk about Madison, I say she is a floor general, I told her that in eighth grade. She was me on the court. She can read my mind as well as any player I’ve ever coached and that’s really special,” Hartline said. “Madison and Maggie both have put in a lot of work from May on and sometimes you have to struggle so we’ve had some up and down moments, but Madison did what she needed to do today and I’m just so proud of her.”
Butts led the Broncos with 18 points in the win and pulled down five rebounds. Maggie Nail finished with nine points and eight rebounds and McBee added seven points and seven boards.
Holly Pond will be back on the court Friday to play either Mars Hill or Lauderdale County in the Northwest Regional finals.
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