POPLARVILLE, Miss. — No. 14 Pearl River women's basketball got all it could handle from rival Jones College Thursday night inside Marvin R. White Coliseum but pulled out a 56-46 win over the Bobcats.

"At the end of the day, the goal is to win the game," head coach Scotty Fletcher said. "We have to clean some things up. Defensively, you've got a chance when you hold a team to the 40s. Our girls were solid on defense."

Pearl River (22-2 overall; 11-1 MACCC) opened the game on fire against rival Jones College (5-18; 2-9, outscoring the Bobcats 19-6 in the opening quarter.

PRCC went on a 13-2 run to start the night, with Mattison Bell (Philadelphia; Choctaw Central) draining the first 3-pointer of the contest. Natasha Barnes (Chicago, Ill.; Kenwood Academy) followed with a long ball of her own. The barrage of 3-pointers continued for the final part of the opening swing as Jazmine Jackson (Jacksonville, Fla.; Andrew Jackson) struck from deep. 

Pearl River grew its lead to as much as 16 points in the second quarter, using a Barnes acrobatic shot and a follow-up free-throw to reach a 27-11 scoreline. Jones College battled back late in the quarter, cutting the deficit down to nine points, 27-18.

PRCC tacked on two baskets late to head into halftime with a 31-18 advantage.

The Bobcats outscored Pearl River 14-9 in the third quarter, and it could have been worse without the play of Sydney Lewis (Upper Marlboro, Md.; McLean School), who hauled in four rebounds and scored six points to keep PRCC in front. During Lewis' stellar third quarter, she scored a putback, drove inside for a layup and drained a long jumper off a Barnes assist.

PRCC led 40-32 after three quarters of play.

The Wildcats returned to form in the fourth quarter of the night, outscoring the Bobcats by a basket. Barnes pushed PRCC's advantage back out to 10 points by nailing a long 3-pointer, 44-34. Shortly after, Sanyla Smith (Tupelo) ripped a beautiful pass down low to Barnes for a layup. 

Paris Gilmore (Youngstown, Ohio; Warrensville Heights) joined in on the fun by dribbling her way inside and floating a ball up into the air that fell in for a basket, 48-39. Barnes hit one more 3-pointer for good measure down the stretch as the Wildcats went on to defeat Jones College 56-46.

LEADING THE WAY
Barnes finished with a game-high 17 points, marking her fourth consecutive contest in double figures. She also had six rebounds, three assists and three steals.

"She is in a really good place mentally right now," Fletcher said. "She's got a great basketball IQ. She's paid the game, and it's paid her back."

Lewis earned a double-double in the game, scoring 15 points and hauling in 11 rebounds.

Jackson rounded out the Wildcats in double figures with 11 points. She also had four rebounds in the contest. 

NEXT UP
The Wildcats return to the court Monday at Mississippi Delta. Tipoff in Moorhead is at 5:30 p.m.

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