By BAKER ELLIS / Sports Editor

MONTEVALLO – If they wanted to, the Montevallo Lady Bulldogs could have beaten West Blocton by 80 on Jan. 12. Led by Takila Hill and Lauren Lilly, Montevallo was in complete and total control of this one from the very beginning, and amassed a ridiculous 42-1 halftime advantage before eventually walking away with the 55-7 win, moving to 14-5 (5-0) on the year.

West Blocton was outmatched from the jump, and could not establish even a semblance of a half-court offense, as Montevallo’s pressure routinely disrupted the Lady Tigers and led to easy buckets. Hill had 12 first-quarter points, but also went 0-4 from the free throw line in the first period while Lilly chipped in 10 points in the first period to lead the Lady Bulldogs initial charge. Montevallo poured in 31 points in the first quarter, and the result was locked up from that point on.

In the second quarter, Montevallo head coach Tena Niven took her foot off the gas and had her team playing less aggressive defense, although it made little difference as West Blocton’s offense was still completely ineffective. After halftime with the game completely locked up, Montevallo more or less went through the motions to get the whopping, 48-point win.

Alasha Reed led Montevallo on the night with 17 points, 10 of which came in the first half, while Lilly finished with 13 and Hill had 14 as well to combine for 80 percent of the Lady Bulldogs’ scoring on the night.