GADSDEN, Ala. — The No. 13 Pearl River women's basketball team got back in the win column Saturday afternoon as the Wildcats went on the road and demolished Gadsden State 93-54 in the final game of 2023.
"I am extremely proud of our effort tonight and the way we handled this game going into the Christmas break," head coach Scotty Fletcher. "We showed a lot of team maturity of focusing on the task at hand and being where our feet are. I thought we were very disruptive defensively and our point of attack was really good on both ends of the court offensively and defensively. Our post did an exceptional job of controlling the paint and Samya Brooks was awesome as well as Leah.
"I was most proud of us executing our offense and getting shots from the paint and inside and learning to play that way as a team and it opened up things for us on the perimeter. We learned a lot about our team last week when we played in Florida and this team continues to be hungry to get better which is a blessing in itself. It was awesome to have Avery back. She has played more college minutes than anyone on our roster and her presence on the floor is very comforting for a coach."
GAME RECAP
Pearl River (8-2 overall) raced out to an 8-0 advantage to begin the day. The run was fueled by a Samya Brooks (Pontotoc) offensive rebound that became a Taylor Johnson-Matthews (Cleveland, Ohio; Charles F. Brush) layup. The run was capped off when Brooks knocked down a layup while being fouled and hit the ensuing free throw.
Gadsden State (6-3) roared back to cut the deficit to just one point at 8-7 before Roge'Ne' Hillard (Hazlehurst; Copiah Academy) put an end to it with an offensive rebound and putback, 10-7.
The Cardinals fought back to tie up the contest at 10 apiece, but Pearl River used a 9-point swing to stretch out a nice lead. The big run was highlighted by an Avery Young (Iota, La.) 3-pointer from the wing and helped PRCC head into the second quarter with a 19-10 advantage.
Johnson-Matthews extended Pearl River's lead out to 23-14 to start the second quarter — first grabbing an offensive rebound and getting a basket and then scoring with a layup on the inbound. Leah Wilcher (Brookhaven) then added to the lead by grabbing her own miss and putting the ball back off the glass and into the basket on the second effort, 25-14.
The Wildcats stretched their lead out to 32-18 with the help of an Alexis Arrington (Terry) score. The guard drove to the basket, sank a layup through a foul and knocked down the free throw. Mikayla Riley (Tupelo) added her second bucket of the day on the next offensive possession with a jumper from the right side, 34-20.
Hama'ya Fielder (Philadelphia; Neshoba Central) caught fire soon after, catching an Arrington pass at the top of the arc and draining a 3-pointer. On the very next possession, Fielder had a perfect trip to the free-throw line to extend the lead to 40-24.
PRCC eventually went into the midway point with a 42-29 lead over the Cardinals.
The Wildcats went on a 7-2 run to begin the third quarter, forcing a Gadsden State timeout. During the run, Johnson-Matthews scored through a GSCC foul and knocked down her free throw. The Cardinals scored out of the timeout, but PRCC immediately got the points back as Young found Fielder all alone in the corner for a catch-and-shoot 3-pointer, 52-33.
The lead continued to swell for Pearl River as the Wildcats moved ahead by 21 points, 60-39, following a Wilcher layup. One play later, Young grabbed a defensive rebound and went coast-to-coast for a layup. Riley added in a pair of 3-point plays to follow. The first was an old-fashioned 3-pointer, hitting a basket and converting the free throw. The second, she nailed a long-range shot in the corner, 68-39. PRCC headed into the final quarter of play ahead 70-45.
PRCC opened the fourth quarter with a 7-0 run. The highlight of the run was when Johnson-Matthews caught a pass inside, drawing all of the defenders her way. She fired out wide to Arrington, who slashed a 3-pointer. The run moved PRCC ahead 77-45.
Midway through the quarter, Marley Freeman (Brandon) saw an open lane and sent a great pass inside to Wilcher, who grabbed it, moved around a defender and sank a layup through a foul.
Tiir Nyok (High Point, S.C.; Southwest Guilford) got on the scoresheet late, knocking down a pair of free throws and a teardrop shot. Freeman followed it up by scoring with a euro step layup, and she eventually capped the game's scoring with a teardrop basket, 94-53.
BY THE NUMBERS
Johnson-Matthews finished with 20 points. Brooks was second with 15. Riley added in 11. Fielder and Arrington.
UP NEXT
Pearl River returns to the court Jan. 5 as Columbia State comes to Marvin R. White Coliseum for a 5:30 p.m. tipoff.
TUNE IN
All home Pearl River basketball games are livestreamed for free at PRCCMedia.com/Gold. Fans who have Roku, Amazon Fire or Apple TV devices can also watch the Wildcat broadcasts by downloading the "Pearl River CC" channel from their app stores.
Games will also be available over the air in Pearl River County by tuning into 1320 AM and 106.9 FM. The radio broadcast is also available at WRJWRadio.com and by downloading the WRJW app.
TICKETS
To help improve traffic flow and fan experience, PRCC athletics box offices will be cashless in 2023-24. Only credit and debit cards will be accepted at the box office. Fans are encouraged to beat the lines and purchase their tickets in advance at PRCCAthletics.com/Tickets.
For the latest on Pearl River Community College athletics, follow us on X (@PRCCAthletics) and Facebook (PRCCAthletics).