
Harmony Howard’s 24 points led the way for Destrehan in a statement-making win, as the Ladycats defeated rival Hahnville at home Friday night, 63-33.
Howard made three 3-pointers in the third quarter as she began to heat up, helping Destrehan open up a commanding lead.
“We just have to come out, do what we do and not think about it too much – just play team ball,” Howard said.
It was the District 8-5A opener for both teams.
The win broke a drought for Destrehan (17-8, 2-0), which had not beaten Hahnville (14-7. 1-1) in the Wildcats’ home gym since 2019 – though DHS did score a win at Hahnville last season as the teams split the annual series.
There will be no split this year, at least not in the regular season, as District 8-5A play is just a single round, thus no rematch is on the schedule.
“We wanted payback,” said Howard. “I believe in us as a team. I thought we played really well on defense and that translated to our offense tonight.”
As for her scoring outburst, Howard said once the opportunities came, she knew she had to take advantage.
“They were stepping up off of me, so I had to shoot,” Howard said.
Destrehan head coach Twalla Powell said her Wildcats played together and determined.
“Our focus was to play team ball, and it was at the highest level tonight,” Powell said. “We shared the ball like we should. In the first half we struggled to rebound the ball. In the second half, we played like we know how – we owned the boards. We executed every play and defensively, we got after it.”
Powell said the Tigers’ recent success at Destrehan was not overlooked in the Wildcats’ locker room.
“We haven’t beat them here at our gym in years. We got them at Hahnville last season, but it’s been a long time since the last time here. So, let’s send a message: win the game here. This was monumental for us,” Powell said.
Destrehan has won three in a row, including a 2-0 start in District 8-5A play. DHS also scored a win Tuesday night over Thibodaux, 50-29, and a recent 64-27 non-district win over St. Mary’s. This is the fifth win streak of three games or more for Destrehan this season.
It had been 11 days since Destrehan’s last game, with games against Southern Lab and Zachary postponed due to last week’s snow event, before the Hahnville game.
“To be out of practice for five days and be able to shoot it like we did tonight was big for us,” Powell said.
She added Howard’s big game came at just the right time.
“(Howard) was ready to shoot the ball,” said Powell. “She didn’t hesitate. Even when she missed a few, she kept shooting the basketball. She’s been learning to shoot off the dribble, it’s something she’s been working on. She’s doing a great job.”