POPLARVILLE, Miss. — It took everything the Pearl River men's basketball team had to withstand a second-half comeback attempt from East Central, but the Wildcats pulled out an 80-73 victory inside Marvin R. White Coliseum.
"They didn't have much to lose going into the second half, and coach (Dylan) Shields probably got on them good during halftime. They (East Central) did what they had to do in the second half to give themselves a chance to win," head coach Chris Oney said. "I told the guys that every game is a puzzle. We have to figure out how to put the pieces in and make the puzzle that has us winning the game. We were able to do that tonight."
The Wildcats (13-3 overall; 2-0 MACCC) started the night on a nice run, scoring the first five points on a Krystian Lewis (Monroe, La.; Wossman) layup through traffic, a jumper and free throw from the guard. Back-to-back mid-range jumpers from Joah Chappelle (Atlanta, Ga.; Dutchtown) extended the lead to 11-2.
A Dylan Sanders (Aurora, Colo.) putback with 13:54 remaining in the first half pushed the Wildcats ahead 20-7. A few minutes later, Kedrick Osby (Moss Point) set the score at 30-19 after getting the rebound off his own missed 3-pointer, driving inside and slamming it home.
Pearl River didn't let up from there, building out a 50-24 lead with the help of an incredible Chappelle play, which saw him steal the ball away from the Warriors, jet down the court and throw down a tomahawk slam. The Wildcats carried a 54-30 lead into midway point.
While it looked like the Wildcats might be on cruise control after a big first half, things changed in the second half. East Central caught fire from the field, and the Wildcats went arctic.
The Warriors erased the 24-point deficit, getting as close as four points behind at 70-66 with four minutes remaining in the game. A clutch block by Chappelle turned into a Lewis layup to stretch things back out to six points. East Central immediately responded with a basket of its own to get back down to four, 72-68.
A Warrior foul put Pearl River in the bonus, and Lewis nailed a pair of clutch free throws, setting the score at 74-68. The following offensive possession saw the 6-foot-5 Jamarion Smith (Magnolia; South Pike) get big for an offensive rebound and put the ball back up into the basket.
Forced to foul, East Central hacked Osby and Mason Lewis (Stockbridge, Ga.; Woodland). Both players took care of their trips to the free-throw line, and PRCC withstood the Warrior surge with an 80-73 victory.
STATISTICALLY SPEAKING
Krystian Lewis and Chappelle did nearly all of the damage for the Wildcats, finishing with 26 and 24 points, respectively. Lewis' 26 points were his second most this season and Chappelle tied his season high.
Chappelle also pulled down 12 boards to finish with a double-double.
"It was a great night for Joah and Krystian both," Oney said. "We had a few plays that were meant for Joah because I wanted to keep the ball in Krystian's hands. You also saw how versatile Joah was tonight. He can go coast-to-coast, hit the midrange and drive. They're both really good players, and I'm happy we have them."
Mason Lewis and Osby each had eight points in the contest. Osby also dished out five assists and pulled in six rebounds.
Sanders finished with seven points, seven rebounds, two steals and an assist.
Smith scored five points and earned eight rebounds.
NEXT UP
Pearl River returns to the court Tuesday at Hinds. Tipoff in Utica is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. The game will be livestreamed at HindsCCSports.net.
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