Pitman (5-4) High head coach Dustin Curtiss is really challenging his team in this year’s preseason schedule.
The Pride girls basketball team has already played in nine games this preseason and followed Monday’s win with a tough matchup against a Lodi (13-2) squad that came into town to challenge a progressive Pride team that is only getting better.
Pitman went up with a quick 5-0 lead, then the Lodi Flames flared away into a 13-0 run after making four three pointers. After going up 22-11 after the first, Pitman was never able to bounce back and they fell 52-39.
“We didn’t play real well in the beginning,” said Curtiss. “The effort was not there in the first half like we wanted it to be. Credit to Lodi for knocking down their shots, but we didn’t when they did.”
It didn’t help that Pitman was held to only 13 points in the first half altogether by Lodi.
“I felt like there were a few minutes where Lodi was not missing any shots,” said Curtiss.
Lodi made over 50 percent of its shots in the first half and was held to only 22 points in the second half even after extending their lead to 20.
Pitman went on to cut the deficit nearing the end of the third after Alize Tyler dropped a critical three. Tyler went on to drain a three in the opening minutes of the fourth quarter and Kaylin Randhawa came alive in the second half with 16 of her 20 points.
Pitman made it competitive, cutting the lead to 7 with four minutes left in the game.
The offense was unable to drop a big three point shot that would have cut the lead by only two possessions but the missed shot cause Lodi to get the ball back and Pitman fouled them.
Lodi went on to make their free throws in the closing minutes, edging out Pitman by double-digits.
“We fought back, made it competitive at the end and they made their free throws, but we showed what we can do,” said Curtiss. “To be honest, our defensive intensity was picked up in the second half, we really attacked the boards."
Pitman’s next game will be at home against an opponent yet to be determined at this year’s Pitman Holiday Classic at 7:15 p.m. Monday.
