It would be easy to overlook Slidell guard Ja’niyah Ducre’s impact if one just glanced at the scorebook.

The junior didn’t record a single point during the Tigers’ 52-26 dismantling of Mandeville at the Fontainebleau Thanksgiving Tournament on Nov. 25.

But her impact on the court is measured far beyond the scorebook, and that was the case for the guard, whose stifling defense led to several Mandeville turnovers that turned into points for her teammates.

“Defense is our No. 1 priority,” Ducre said. “Defense wins games. Sometimes you have off days where layups aren’t falling, but defense never takes off. We always want to win the first two minutes, so we come out hard and fast to set the tone. We want to put pressure on our opponents.”

The Tigers (5-0) did that throughout their early mor

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