LIBERTY HILL

It took one free throw for Kandyn Faurie to realize the Alamodome is not your basic high school basketball venue

To her surprise, Faurie, a Liberty Hill junior, could see fans looking at her from behind the backboard. At most high school gyms in Texas, a blank wall is the typical backdrop behind the backboard.

Faurie and her teammates should be more accustomed to the spacious Alamodome when they play there in the UIL girls state tournament for the third straight year. Liberty Hill (35-2) will face Godley (35-4) in a Class 4A state semifinal at 3 p.m. Friday.

Liberty Hill junior center Sedona Prince said some of the Panthers felt like babies when they played at the Alamodome last March. They had trouble adjusting their depth perception while shooting inside a cavernous venue constructed for football that opened in 1993.

You think youre close to the basket and then you shoot an air ball, said Prince, a 6-foot-7 University of Texas pledge. Last year we had trouble adjusting to the lighting, which was very, very bright. The light was messing with my eyes.

The Panthers and the other 23 girls basketball teams that will convene at the Alamodome this weekend all will have to adjust to playing in an arena that can seat up to 39,500 for basketball, although the setup for the UIL tournament includes roughly 20,000 seats. Liberty Hills players also believe the other Class 4A semifinalists will have to adjust to the Panthers style of play.

Combining a powerful frontcourt with a pressing defense this season, the Panthers topped Austin-area teams in scoring at 65 points per game while allowing only 33.5. They enter the state tournament with a 15-game winning streak under second-year coach Chris Lange.

After being promoted from Liberty Hill Junior High, Lange tweaked the Panthers style of play upon his arrival at the high school in the fall of 2015. A team that relied heavily on 3-point shots began to feed the ball inside.

Faurie, who describes herself as a banger, is a muscular 5-8 forward who uses her strength and quickness to offset taller opponents. Prince is a five-star recruit who played for Team USA junior squads during the past two summers.

Faurie averages a team-high 17.3 points while Prince chips in 15.3. Prince finished the regular-season as the Austin-area in field-goal percentage (.595) and blocked shots (5.2 per game). She also averaged 9.1 rebounds.

It makes common sense for teams to play to their advantages, Faurie said. If you have an advantage shooting threes, then shoot threes. If your advantage is height and the inside game, go there first.

Faurie listed three reasons why the Panthers have blossomed this season chemistry, speed and their press.

Ten of the 14 girls on Liberty Hills roster have been playing together since the fourth grade, and Faurie and Prince have been friends since they were in the same class in second grade.

The Panthers quickness comes from guards Shaylin Vickers and Bethany McLeod, whos also a 100- and 300-meter hurdler. Vickers, meanwhile, has raced with Liberty Hills 1,600-meter relay team that has won state titles in each of the past two years. The duo has combined for 6.2 assists per game, most of them coming off feeds to Faurie and Prince.

In its latest trip to the UIL state tournament, Liberty Hill will be trying to break an 0 for 5 drought in state-semifinal contests. In 2016, the Panthers lost to Argyle the two-time defending Class 4A champion by 11 points, 43-32.

The goal as always for the Panthers will be to earn the right to hang a banner that reads 2017 state champions inside their cozy campus gym. Right behind a backboard.

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Liberty Hill looks inside in bid for breakthrough state-tournament win - MyStatesman.com