POPLARVILLE, Miss. — The No. 12 Pearl River women's basketball team showed that it's not about the way you start, but it's how you finish. Despite getting off to a shaky start, the Wildcats played smothering defense in the final two quarters to walk away with a 40-point, 76-36 win over East Mississippi Tuesday night inside Marvin R. White Coliseum.
"I have to figure out a way to get us off to better starts," head coach Scotty Fletcher said. "This is a new team with a new identity. Our ball movement and player movement were better today to start the game. Our defense was great tonight, and I was proud of their effort on that side of the ball. We just need to figure out how to start off better."
GAME RECAP
Pearl River (10-2 overall) got off to a slow start to open up the contest, finding themselves in a 6-6 tie with 5:10 left in the first quarter against East Mississippi (3-10). An impressive play by Marley Freeman (Brandon) sparked a Wildcat run. The Eastern New Mexico State transfer dribbled through some traffic before firing a no-look pass down low to Samya Brooks (Pontotoc) for an easy layup. A few possessions later, Pearl River led 12-8.
Following two late free throws by Taylor Johnson-Matthews (Cleveland, Ohio; Charles Fr. Brush), Tiir Nyok (High Point, N.C.; Southwest Guilford) leaked to the corner, received a pass from Avery Young (Iota, La.) and nailed a 3-pointer, 17-9.
Pearl River got off to a much better start in the second quarter, building out a 22-13 advantage when Johnson-Matthews turned around near the free-throw line and mashed a jumper. One play later, Freeman dished the ball to Mikayla Riley (Tupelo), who drove inside and softly laid it off the glass for a basket, 24-13.
A brief East Mississippi run was halted when Brooks snatched an offensive rebound, spun around and put the ball back up for a basket, making the score 26-17 Wildcats. Pearl River struck from the charity stripe six more times down the stretch, and Hama'ya Fielder (Philadelphia; Neshoba Central) nailed a 3-pointer to send the Wildcats into the midway point with a 37-24 lead.
Pearl River started squeezing life out of its competition in the third quarter, outscoring East Mississippi 25-5 over the 10-minute stretch. The Wildcats opened things up by converting the old-fashioned 3-pointer. The nearby Young corraled an errant pass. The sophomore guard cruised down the court and knocked down a layup despite being hacked. She then popped her free throw attempt, 40-24.
Alexis Arrington's (Terry) handles helped PRCC create a basket with 5:53 left in the quarter. She moved inside and found herself in a one-on-one matchup. She faked to her right, then drove to the left and laid it up and in through a foul. The ensuing free throw was good, 45-26.
A six-point run fueled PRCC in the middle portion of the quarter, pulling ahead 55-27 after Freeman lasered a pass across the paint to Fielder for a layup. Pearl River eventually entered the fourth with a 62-29 lead.
The fourth was more of the same for the Wildcats, playing smothering defense and padding their lead. Leah Wilcher (Brookhaven) opened the scoring in the half with a perfect showing at the free-throw line, 64-36. The Riley and Freeman connection struck twice following. First, Freeman dished to Riley for a 3-pointer, and on the very next possession, Riley assisted a long two-point shot from Freeman, 69-36.
Audria Houston (Oxford; Tupelo) added a final basket of the game after she fought for an offensive rebound and put it right back up to help PRCC secure a 40-point, 76-36 win.
BY THE NUMBERS
Wilcher led the way for the Wildcats, finishing with a 10-point, 11-rebound double-double.
"Give credit to her for her preparation and discipline," Fletcher said. "There were games where Leah started and then we started moving with some new personnel. She didn't pout, she responded the right way, and she's been a great teammate. The game paid her back tonight. She's made a lot of growth. She was phenomenal at controlling the paint."
Riley was the game's leading scorer with 14 points. Freeman was the only other Wildcat in double figures with 10 points.
NEXT UP
The Wildcats return to action Wednesday night with a road trip to Delgado. Tipoff is scheduled for 6 p.m. There will be no livestream for the game.
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