Davis' Teyia Harvin gets her shot blocked by Eisenhower's Sarah Mount during the first half of Monday's Big Nine League contest in the Tourneytown.com Shootout in the Yakima Valley SunDome.   BRIAN FITZGERALD/Yakima Herald-Republic View all photos for this story.

By JERREL SWENNING
YAKIMA HERALD-REPUBLIC

So far, so ... well ... pretty good.

At least that's the review from the Eisenhower girls basketball team's toughest critic, coach John Triplett.

After the Cadets finished thumping rival Davis 80-43 on Monday morning at the Tourneytown.com Shootout at the Yakima Valley SunDome, Triplett said the 10-0 and fourth-ranked Cadets are still very much a work in progress.

"It's funny sitting here 10-0 and saying we're not where we want to be," he said. "But experience is still a factor; we don't start a senior.

"There's plenty of room for improvement."

And Eisenhower is even starting a player with no varsity experience before this season. Although it would be hard to tell from Monday's game.

Marianne Lombardi, one of the quintet of juniors the Cadets start, shot 10-for-18 and scored a game-high 25 points and grabbed 16 rebounds to lead the Cadets in what was otherwise a foul-filled contest that lacked rhythm much of the time.

"She kind of carried us," Triplett said. "We've been trying to look for her the whole year and the last two weeks she's been the focus."

And while her coach didn't indulge in any celebration about finishing the first of two laps around the Big Nine Conference undefeated, Lombardi was willing to.

"It feels awesome; it's so nice to be 10-0," said Lombardi, who transferred from West Valley last year and was relegated to junior varsity because of WIAA rules.

Lombardi was about the only player making shots in the first half. Even with her 4-for-7 shooting, the Cadets made just one-third of their shots (12 of 36). They also committed 15 fouls and turned it over eight times.

"That was the worst half of basketball we've played this year," Triplett said.

The Pirates (5-5) were even worse, shooting just 26 percent and found themselves down 37-23 at the half.

"If we could've pressed them the whole game," lamented Davis coach Tim Lee. "But we don't have the (depth)."

The Pirates, who suit up just eight players, also were saddled with foul trouble. Davis was called for 30 of the game's 53 fouls and three players eventually fouled out.

The struggles continued for Davis in the second half as it made just 2 of 16 shots from the field after intermission -- one in each quarter.

And the longer SunDome floor seemed to take its toll on the shorthanded Pirates, but the Cadets as well.

"We're one of the best-conditioned teams in the Big Nine and we still have a long ways to go," Lombardi said.

Alli Krous came off the Ike bench to score 11 points and pull down six rebounds. She was the only other player in double figures for the Cadets, who set the single-game scoring record. Ike topped the 68 points Central Valley scored against West Valley last year.

The Pirates were led by Whitney Cass' 14 points and 10 rebounds. Teammate Christina McDuffie added 13 points and nine boards before fouling out.