The Selma Lady Saints jumped out to a big lead early and never looked back, as they defeated the Francis Marion Lady Rams 45-27 in their season opener at home on Thursday.

Anthony Harris, head girls basketball coach of Selma High School, said the Lady Saints got off to a good start, but need to correct some minor errors and get tougher in the post.

“We looked pretty decent the first half. I slowed them down. We were pressing and that’s how we got the points we got. I didn’t want to look like I was hot dogging in the first game , I wanted to see my system on offense and defense,” Harris said. “I think the second half we made a few errors. We didn’t turn the ball over like we normally do — we had 12. Over the past few years we’ve averaged 17 or 19 turnovers. Other than that, second half, we looked good.”

The Lady Saints jumped out to an 18-2 lead in the first quarter before taking a 28-8 lead into halftime.

Selma was able to force turnovers on the night to help them to victory, as senior point guard Kendra McCovery had 11 steals for the Lady Saints to go along with her 16 points, four rebounds and three assists.

Ayana Moore added 11 points and five rebounds for Selma, while J’tia White had four blocks for Selma.

Trishtanya Jones had 14 points for Francis Marion, while Chelsea Williams added six points for the Lady Rams.

The Lady Saints will head to Madison on Friday to participate in the Bob Jones Tournament at Bob Jones High School, and are scheduled to play three games.