TONY STINNETT, Courier Co-Editor
Saturday, December 10, 2011 7:05 am

JAMESTOWN - Macy Clements' 3-point attempt at the buzzer was off the mark and Cannon County suffered a narrow 46-43 setback against undefeated York here Friday (Dec. 9).

Abbey Sissom scored a game-high 24 points and Ashley Basham finished with eight but the usually high-scoring Lionettes (7-2, 1-2) were held in check by York, which remained perfect after nine games, including two district wins.

Joanna Young added six points for the Lionettes but second-leading scorer Lindsey Reed battled foul trouble throughout and was held to two points.

The Lionettes shot just 29 percent (15-of-52) and still had a chance to win the game late.

"We just didn't shoot well. We got good looks, but we didn't knock them down," Lionettes Head Coach Michael Dodgen said. "To shoot like we did and only get two points from (Reed) and still have a chance to win says something about competing and finding a way. We just didn't do enough to go on the road against a quality opponent, which York is, and win."

The game was a reminder there are not breathers in District 8-AA as the Lionettes played their second league road game in a tough atmosphere against quality opponents. They were at Upperman the previous week.

Cannon County led 38-37 after Sissom's long 3-pointer with 4:50 remaining. At that point the Lionettes had connected on three of their first five attempts of the quarter. They would not score another field goal until Basham's putback with 1:36 remaining.

Despite the more than three minute scoring drought, Basham's basket pulled Cannon County to within 42-40 with 1:36 remaining. They trailed 44-43 when Ashli Wright connected on two field goals with nine seconds remaining to provide York (8-0, 2-0) with a 46-43 lead.

The Lionettes still had a chance to force overtime. York double teamed Sissom to force someone else to take the last shot of regulation. Clements took the final shot under pressure and was just off the mark.

Cannon County came out strong and built an early 11-2 lead. Reed started the early explosion with a layup and Sissom scored 11 of her 24 in the first eight minutes. Things started to turn in the second quarter when York used a 14-7 run and led 25-24 at the half. The Lionettes, who had Reed and Basham in foul trouble, struggled on the boards and gave up too many second-shot opportunities.

Cannon County scored 11 points off of 10 York turnovers in the first quarter and although the defense continued to force miscues in the second half, the Lionettes were not as consistent cashing in on the offensive end.

The Lionettes' missed field goal attempts in the third quarter ignited York's transition. Cannon County hit just 3-of-14 field goal tries in the third quarter. Nonetheless, Cannon County trailed just 33-31 after three quarters.

The Lionettes grit and determination kept them in the game on a night when the offense, as a whole, was not on track. They will return home to face rival DeKalb County for the final district game until January Tuesday. Tipoff at Robert A. Gymnasium is 6 p.m.