Candace Dyer and Kellie Kellogg (week 11)
Tennessee Temple’s girl’s basketball team made a turn for the better last week, playing perhaps its best basketball of the season at opportune time.
No two players had a bigger role in the Lady Crusader’s success than Candace Dyer and Kellie Kellogg.
Dyer’s offense and Kellogg’s tenacious defense helped Temple win its regular season finale at David Brained, then beat David Brainerd in the opening round of the District 5-A tournament and upset No. 2 seed Copper Basin in the semifinals before falling to Grace in the championship game.
Dyer, a junior guard who leads the team in scoring, averaged 15 points in those four games. Meanwhile, Kellogg, a sophomore guard, averaged 5.5 points while playing in-your-face defense against whoever she was guarding.
Dyer had 18 points, 8 rebounds, 4 steals and 2 steals in Temple’s upset win over Copper Basin. She was injured late in the fourth quarter but came back in the overtime to lift her team to the win.
Kellogg’s best offensive game came against Copper Basin. She had 10 points to go along with seven rebounds.
“Candace did what she’s done for most of the season,” Temple coach Shameca Gardner said. “Everybody knows how important she is to this team. Kellie really stepped up. She played unbelievable defense. . . she was hustling all over the place. I can’t believe how much she has improved. She is playing so much better now than she was earlier in the season.”
