LAKELAND — Anisa Tuitt had 15 points and 13 rebounds as Kissimmee Gateway turned back George Jenkins’ second-half rally to win 39-27 on Monday night in the quarterfinal round of the Class 9A, District 7 girls basketball tournament.
Jaida Young led George Jenkins with 10 points. Te’Ajia Myrick added nine points and Bianca Johnson had 11 rebounds for the Eagles.
The Panthers (7-11) advanced to a semifinal matchup against top-seeded Haines City.
Tuitt was the game’s leading scorer without making a field goal in the second half. She scored five straight points to lift the Panthers to an 11-point lead late in a fist half in which George Jenkins had only two field goals.
Young kept the Eagles in the game by hitting seven of her first eight free throws, and Myrick hit a jumper to pull the Eagles within two, at 24-22, midway through the third quarter.
But Bailey Shinder Miller, who finished with eight points and nine rebounds, answered with a 3-pointer for Gateway, and the Eagles never got any closer.
“I told our team at halftime we had to play defense and make free throws,” said George Jenkins coach Kayla Jones. “But our youth caught up with us and we ran out of game.”
The Eagles, who started three freshmen and a sophomore, finished their season at 4-22.