Berry and Nanney catch fire, Delta GBB blows past Chaffee 73-48 in regular-season rubber match

DELTA — Jade Berry was not ready to lose to Chaffee for the second time this season, especially in her final year playing high school girls basketball.

Freshman Raelin Nanney helped put any doubts to rest.

Berry scored a game-high 21 points, Nanney added 19, and Delta dominated the Lady Devils 73-48 in the regular-season trilogy Monday night at Delta High School.

After falling to Chaffee in the Red Devil Invitational finals in December, Delta (18-3) retained bragging rights after last defeating its rival 62-50 in the Scott-Miss Conference finals Jan. 30.

And on Monday, the Ladycats did not just want to win — they wanted to make a statement.

“I just kept thinking back to the first time that we played them,” Berry said. “We did not play a good game. We did not play how we know that we can play. And then tonight, we came out with the mindset of, ‘Let's just show them that we beat them once, we can beat them again and we can do this.’ We had a ton of energy. Everybody contributed to scoring and rebounding and playing defense, and we won this game as a team.”

The dynamic Berry bulled her way through Chaffee for a game-high in points and Nanney drained five shots from beyond the arc to fuel the fire. Juniors Lilli Boitnott and Grace Ancell each added 11 and eight points, respectively, for a surging Delta team that has now won 13 of its last 14.

“We’re only 4 miles apart,” veteran head coach David Heeb said of the Delta-Chaffee rivalry. “A lot of these girls are friends with each other. This is not an ugly rivalry. We really like Chaffee. I hope they like us. We get along real well and, so, for our seniors, this is their last time they’re going to get to play these girls. Some games you worry about what the other team's going to do. You scout them and say, ‘Let's take this away from them.’ And then other nights, you just say, ‘Hey, let's just go do what we do.’ And tonight, that's what it took — just go do what you do. And we were good at what we did tonight.”

Despite solid performances from Bailey Robertson, Carlyanne Cossou and Kiersten Arnold, who each dropped double figures, Chaffee (14-5) fell into a big early hole and was under a barrage of turnovers all game long against the swarming Ladycats.

After leading 13-9 through the first eight minutes, Delta used a massive 27-point second quarter to take over the driver’s seat. Nanney hit a pair of 3s for 11 first-half points as the Lady Devils repeatedly left her open on the perimeter. The promising freshman, as well as Berry and junior Trena Crowden, started hitting shots during a big run that handed Delta a commanding 40-23 halftime advantage.

The Lady Devils began to stay in it with a Cossou 3-pointer before Delta continued to crush their hopes with an avalanche of 3-pointers and stifling defensive play to go up by 22 heading into the fourth.

“We've got a lot better through the course of the season, which is a credit to the kids and how hard they work every day,” Heeb said. “We had a day last week where I kicked them all out of the gym. I just didn't think they were practicing hard, but I just thought we needed a wake-up call. And they've responded back with the kind of effort that our program is built on: just relentless pressure, relentless running the floor. We're going to try to wear you down. And I thought in the second quarter tonight, especially, we really did that.”

The Ladycats knocked down 13 3-pointers — 10 of which belonged to Berry and Nanney — and were just as effective with their inside power game to overwhelm Chaffee.

“Every day in practice we come out with the energy like it's a game because you're going to play in games exactly how you practice,” Berry said. “If you don't take practice seriously, you're not going to win games. And we want to win state.

“Right now, we're just focusing on what's in front of us and how we're going to beat the teams in front of us. But, as long as we play like we know we can, we can beat anybody.”

Based on what went down Monday night, it’s awfully hard to bet against that.

Delta returns to its home court at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 11, for a big-time showdown against Portageville (20-3). Chaffee will look to bounce back at home against Malden (13-6) at 5 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 11.