Lady Coyotes falter late in loss against Artesia

Despite matching Artesia’s offensive output, Roswell could not score and stop the Bulldogs from scoring or getting in the free-throw line. The Lady Coyotes scored seven points compared to Artesia’s 24 points in the second half.

Roswell also had trouble with Artesia's defense as the Lady Bulldogs bothered the Lady Coyotes enough to force a turnover or capitalize on their mistakes.

“We got shots that we wanted in the first half. It was just one of those nights that we struggled to make shots,” Lady Coyotes varsity basketball head coach Dan Smith said. “Our movement on offense slowed down and I think that may have been fatigue. We got to work on movement. Artesia did a good job attacking us with their post-to-post. We knew that coming into the second half and we had a hard time guarding it.”

The Lady Coyotes start their tough three-game home stand on Saturday against Portales, then begin district play at Hobbs on Tuesday and Carlsbad on Jan. 27. The Lady Coyotes are currently 9-10 on the season.

Sports reporter Blynn Juliano Beltran can be reached at 575-622-7710, ext. 304, or sports@rdrnews.com.