The Universal Audenried Charter girls’ basketball team entered the Public League semifinals Thursday night as three-time reigning champions, but the journey for its fourth title looks different.
Guard Shayla Smith led the Rockets the last four seasons and became Philadelphia’s all-time leading scorer, but she graduated and moved on to Penn State.
Against Abraham Lincoln, Audenried showed it still can win. Behind junior forward Nasiaah Russell and senior guard Heaven Reese, the Rockets are heading to their fourth straight Public League title game after beating Lincoln, 67-28, at La Salle’s John Glaser Arena. Audenried will face Imhotep on Sunday.
After a sluggish first four minutes, Audenried dominated the rest of the way. The Rockets outscored Lincoln by 19 points in the second half by forcing turnovers and scoring in transition. Four players scored in double figures, led by Reese’s 16 points and sophomore guard Chloe Kham’s 15 off the bench.
“Us making it back to the championship after Shayla leaving is huge for me,” said Audenried coach Kevin Slaughter. “A lot of people were saying once Shayla left, we were done, and to get back is big for us.”
Audenried found stability behind Reese, who has been part of the winning culture at Audenried and knows what it takes to bring home a Public League crown.
The experience of Reese, a Coppin State commit; Russell, who’s committed to St. John’s; and guard Aniyah Cheeseboro made overcoming the loss of Smith easier.
“The last three years, we have all been behind Shayla and the other seniors,” Reese said. “So for us to [go win without her], it just means a lot.”
The Rockets ended the first quarter on a 16-1 run to take a 12-point lead. Kham hit back-to-back threes early in the second to push Audenried’s lead to 16. The sophomore was a significant factor for Audenried with her deep shooting and layups in transition.
“Chloe has been a person who’s been struggling a bit this season … and I think it was her first high school experience because she didn’t really play at Neumann Goretti last year,” Slaughter said. “So for her to come out and have 15 points is huge for us.”
Audenried took a 40-18 halftime lead with another championship appearance in sight. Lincoln scored the first three points of the second half before the Rockets put the game away.
They scored 27 straight points to enter the final eight minutes with a 67-21 lead. Reese and Russell led the charge with 12 during the run.
The championship game will pit Audenried against Imhotep for a fourth straight year. The Rockets won, 65-52, last year behind 35 points from Smith. They may not have Smith, but their confidence in winning a fourth straight Public League title remains high.
“Me personally, I always thought we were going to get back here,” Slaughter said. “Because a lot of the kids who were ninth and 10th graders when Shayla was there, they got to see it. … They have been in these wars.”
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