Matt Vines

COUSHATTA – The Red River girls basketball team has vastly improved this season, and they’ll have a chance to put that improvement on display when the No. 10 seed Lady Bulldogs host No. 23 Many in the first round of the Division III Non-Select playoffs.

The Lady Bulldogs (19-12) will host Many (12-17) on Thursday at 6 p.m., the program’s first postseason home game since 2021.

The Lady Bulldogs head into the postseason as winners of seven of their last eight games, including a District 3-2A title with a 7-1 record.

That one loss came to Many in the district opener, falling 39-33 on the road on Jan. 16.

But Red River more than made up for that loss with a 58-43 triumph at home on Feb. 3.

“The difference (between those two games) was execution and energy,” said Red River coach Kim Burton.

“In the loss, we allowed momentum swings to affect us and didn’t control the pace.

“In the win, we stayed disciplined, defended with consistency, and made timely plays. We were more physical and rebounded better. But we know the records and rankings don’t matter in the postseason. Every team is fighting to extend their season, and we are going to take it one possession at a time and game at a time.”

Burton credited improved effort and performance on the defensive end for Red River’s late-season surge, which extends to 12-3 in their last 15 games.

“Our defense has improved tremendously,” Burton said. “Coach McDuffy has brought a special touch and intensity to that side of the ball, and the girls have completely bought in.

“They’ve committed to defending at a high level, rebounding with purpose, and valuing every possession.”

Many finished district play at 4-4, splitting with Red River and Winnfield, losing both to Mansfield and sweeping Lakeside.

Red River is sort of in a position to defend its district title in the playoffs, with the Red River-Many winner facing the winner of No. 7 Mansfield and No. 26 Donaldsonville.

The Lady Bulldogs swept the Lady Wolverines in the regular season by scores of 32-27 and 42-39.
Mansfield has been the standard in the district, and Burton knows that feat should translate into the postseason.

“Any district championship is meaningful, but sweeping a program like Mansfield certainly adds to it,” Burton said. “They are well-coached, disciplined, and competitive, so earning two wins against them says a lot about our growth.

“More than anything, it reinforced to our girls that when they execute the game plan and stay locked in, they can compete with anyone. It wasn’t about just beating Mansfield, it was about proving to ourselves that we can handle big moments with composure.”

That mental maturity has been the difference in winning close games and enforcing their will on opponents that didn’t necessarily happen earlier in the season.

“The biggest key to our strong finish has been maturity and buying into the details,” Burton said. “Early in the season, we showed flashes of what we could be, but down the stretch, we truly locked in, especially on the defensive end.”

Red River is looking for its first playoff win since 2021, the last season under Missy Antilley. It’s also the last time playoff girls basketball graced Coushatta.

This is the best season since 2019 when Red River claimed the No. 4 seed and went to the Top 28.

The Lady Bulldogs want to pen another chapter in that story.