'We came out, we hustled': Summer Creek girls basketball moves on to state

As the old adage goes, don't judge a book by its cover.

The Summer Creek girls basketball team may have defeated Pearland 59-42 to capture the Region III-6A crown and a ticket to state, but the battle between the Houston-area programs on Feb. 26 was mostly a close contest.

VYPE Houston reported that the Oilers occupied the driver's seat to start the game, but Summer Creek coach Carlesa Dixon said her Bulldogs stayed the course.

“For my girls to just stay calm and not get rattled, it meant a lot," Dixon told the website. "It meant everything.”

As she has done all through her senior season for Summer Creek, guard-forward Kaitlyn Duhon put the program on her shoulders. 

The future Auburn Tiger contributed a game-high 20 points, three of which came on an AND1 basket that sparked the Bulldogs' successful comeback midway through the second half, according to the Houston Chronicle.

Duhon shared her coach's sentiments in regards to the team's resiliency.

“We came out, we hustled," she told VYPE Houston. "We had our ups and downs but we really picked it up, and we really come together well as a group when we play coachable and adapt.”

Sophomores Janiya Murphy and Torran Deterville each chipped in 10 points to complement what was another stellar outing for Duhon.

According to VYPE Houston, things were tight between Summer Creek and Pearland for 26 minutes of the contest.

This is Summer Creek's second state berth in almost half a decade. 

The Bulldogs have a date in the Class 6A state semifinals with South Grand Prairie from the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex at San Antonio's Alamodome on March 4 at 7 p.m. 

The victor goes on to play the winner of the Desoto-San Antonio Clark matchup for the Class 6A crown the next day.