Lewis-Palmer towers over Pueblo County

PUEBLO - Lewis-Palmer's twin towers of Lindsey Leband and Amy Bladow had it their way inside in a 47-34 victory Friday night over Pueblo County.

The win moved Lewis-Palmer (19-4) into the quarterfinals of the Class 4A girls state basketball tournament next weekend in Denver, where it faces top-seeded Mullen.

Leband, a 6-foot junior, and Bladow, a 6-2 sophomore, combined for 21 points in the paint in the hard-fought victory over a team made up of mostly freshmen and sophomores.

"We didn't play that well in the first half, but we'll take the win. We were a little nervous coming in," Lewis-Palmer coach Russ Smith said.

Smith's team found itself down 29-28 with 1:47 remaining in the third quarter. That turned out to be Pueblo County's last lead.

A 12-1 run by Lewis Palmer put the game away midway through the fourth quarter. During that run, LeBand and Bladow did their damage inside, while guards Lindsey Watson, Liz Kurtz and Krista Rosebush scored from the outside and handled the Pueblo County pressure.

Pueblo County mustered only five points in the fourth period.

"Defense is what we really emphasize," Smith said. "We don't have the best outside shooting, so we have to make up for it on defense.

"We spend a tremendous amount of time of defensive fundamental skills. We just like to play man-to-man, be aggressive and that's a big thing for us."

Early in the game, Kurtz provided Lewis-Palmer's spark. She knocked down four long-range bombs in the first 10 minutes.

From there, LeBand and Bladow took over.

LeBand ended up playing the entire game, while Bladow exited midway through the fourth quarter after fouling out.

The experience of LeBand and Watson, the team's point guard, down the stretch, Smith said, was key in the triumph.

"Their presence on the court is a must for us," he said. "They need to be on the court and they got us to the fourth quarter and then kind of took over from there."

- Troy Schwindt may be reached at 636-0250 or gtsports@gazette.com

Class 4A girls

Lewis-Palmer 47, Pueblo Co. 34

HIGHLIGHT: Lindsey Leband and Amy Bladow combine for 21 points in the paint for L-P.

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