Mehlville Senior High School head girls’ basketball coach Laura Bishop hopes that last week’s 52-49 loss at Lafayette was a wake-up call for her team.

“They (Lafayette) came out with full-court pressure in the first half and our problem was getting into our half-court game,” Bishop told the Call. “I think that this was the first time the girls saw what it was like to not have that strong point guard out there on the court.”

The Panthers (3-1, 0-1 Suburban West) jumped out to a 15-9 lead in the first half Dec. 5 and extended that lead to 24-16 by halftime.

But an 18-8 run by Lafayette in the third quarter doomed Mehlville as the Panthers struggled to generate any momentum against the Lancers.

Lafayette finished off Mehlville by outscoring the Panthers 18-17 in the fourth quarter.

Mehlville’s Laquisha Lewis led all scorers with 16 points and five rebounds. The senior guard also recorded three steals and one assist in the loss to Lafayette.

“Laquisha played a pretty good game,” Bishop said. “In the second half, though, she said that she felt like she didn’t have any legs left.”

Lewis’ younger sister Liamesha scored 10 points and four rebounds against Lafayette. The junior forward also had two assists and one steal against the Lancers.

“Liamesha had a pretty solid game in the first half,” Bishop said. “But overall, I was very satisfied with her play on defense.”

The Panthers play host to Kirkwood Friday evening in a Suburban West Conference matchup with the Pioneers. Kirkwood (4-1, 1-0 Suburban West) is coming off a 45-24 win over Villa Duchesne.

Kirkwood’s Carla Jones racked up 17 points, three rebounds, two assists and one steal.

“Kirkwood’s very athletic,” Bishop said. “They’re not big, but they’re fast and they like to press.”

Mehlville’s home game against Kirk-wood is scheduled for a 7 p.m. start.