From start to finish, the Pineville girls basketball team controlled the game against Lynn Camp on Thursday. The Lady Lions led wire-to-wire en route to a 48-25 win — leaving Pineville with only one district loss as the end of the regular season draws near.

“We played well. We didn’t shoot the ball well, but we played hard defensively. They finally decided they wanted to be a better defensive team,” said Pineville coach Jamie Mills. “To win the big games, you have to be a great defensive team. They took pride in that tonight.”

Pineville changed defenses throughout the game — running man-to-man in the first half before switching halfcourt traps and zone in the second half. The Lady Lion defense was able to force seven steals throughout the game.

Offensively, it was a team effort as three starters ended the game in double figures. Jill Enix led the way with 12 points, 11 rebounds, six assists and three steals. Both Raigan King and Whitney Caldwell ended the night with 10 points. Caldwell also tied for a team-high three steals.

Makenzie Fuson chipped seven points to go along with her five rebounds during the game.

“They played great team-ball tonight,” said Mills. “When we play as a team, we play well. As long as we don’t get individual out there, we play well.”

Pineville continues to search for depth from the bench with Virginia Hall and Madison Ford earning quality minutes in the rotation against the Lady Wildcats. Hall finished with three points, and Ford tallied two points.

While she didn’t score much off the bench, Ford came in and slowed down Jada Rogers — who led Lynn Camp in scoring — while she was on the floor.

“She is an athlete,” said Mills about Ford. ” She’s not played since the fourth grade…and she gets after it. She makes things happen, and it’s usually for the good.”

Jada Rogers paced Lynn Camp with 11 points while going 4-for-4 from the charity stripe. Jasmine Rogers was the only other Lady Wildcat to register more than one basket from the field. She ended the night with five points.

Pineville raced out front to a 9-0 lead early in the first with Enix, Caldwell and King each scoring baskets. King capped the run with a free-throw at the 3:12 mark in the period.

Jada Rogers ended Lynn Camp’s scoring drought with a pair of free throws that cut the lead to 9-2 with 2:07 remaining in the quarter. Jasmine Rogers added a jumper to narrow the deficit to five before an Enix put-back basket gave Pineville an 11-4 lead after one.

The Lady Lions increased their lead to double-digits to open the second quarter. Enix scored a basket off an inbound pass and Caldwell hit a 3-pointer to give Pineville a 16-4 lead.

Lynn Camp surged back with a 7-0 run that was capped by a Haley Walker 3-pointer that decreased the lead to 16-11 and forced Pineville to call a timeout. Coming out of the timeout, King converted the and-1 to give the Lady Lions a 19-11 lead with 3:37 remaining.

The Lady Wildcats cut the lead to 19-14 with a free throw from Maci Miracle and a layup from Jada Rogers. Pineville ended the half with a 6-0 run that gave them a 25-14 lead heading into halftime.

The Lady Lions took full control of the game in the third quarter. Pineville opened the third with an 11-0 run that extended through the midway point of the frame. A pair of Enix free throws gave Pineville a 36-14 lead with 4:57 remaining in the quarter.

The Lady Lions ended up outscoring Lynn Camp 21-6 in the third to take a 46-20 lead into the final period.

With the clock running, the two teams combined for only seven points in the fourth quarter as Pineville exited the gym with a 23-point victory.

Up Next

Pineville (16-6) will host North Laurel (18-6) on Monday at 7 p.m.

Lynn Camp (10-10) will travel to Clinton County (6-16) on Saturday.

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Pineville 48, Lynn Camp 25

PINEVILLE (16-6)

Sarah Combs 1 0-0 3, Jill Enix 4 4-4 12, Raigan King 4 2-3 10, Makenzie Fuson 3 1-2 7, Whitney Caldwell 2 5-7 10, Virginia Hall 1 0-0 3, Madison Ford 1 0-1 2, Summer Partin 0 1-2 1. Totals: 16 13-19 48.

LYNN CAMP (10-10)

Haley Walker 1 0-0 3, Maci Miracle 0 1-2 1, Molli White 0 3-4 3, Jada Rogers 3 4-4 11, Jasmine Rogers 2 1-2 5, Natalie Fanella 0 2-2 2. Totals: 6 11-14 25.

Pineville 11 14 21 2 — 48

Lynn Camp 4 10 6 5 — 25

3-point goals: Pineville 3 (Combs 1, Caldwell 1, Hall 1), Lynn Camp 2 (Walker 1, J. Rogers 1).

Reach Anthony Cloud at 606-302-9090 or on Twitter @AnthonyCloudMDN