Revenge is a dish best served cold. It wasn’t cold Friday night, but the South Pike Lady Eagles did get revenge, edging the McComb Lady Tigers 50-42 in McComb.
Similar to the first game the teams played Jan. 20 in Magnolia, McComb (25-2, 9-1) jumped out to a double-digit lead before South Pike (17-5, 5-5) pulled ahead. McComb eventually won that game by two points.
The only difference in Friday’s game is South Pike did not relinquish the lead once they got it.
“We chipped at the lead,” said South Pike head coach Hilton Harrell. “We didn't panic. They rebounded and ran the plays tonight. They chipped one basket at a time and they never gave up.”
Dellesheonia Dixon’s layup with less than one minute left in the first quarter gave the Lady Tigers a 17-7 lead.
Destiny Smith’s free throw put McComb on top 24-8 with 3:27 left before halftime.
The Lady Eagles went on a short 6-0 run to cut the deficit to 24-14 at halftime.
A Nakaylis Washington bucket cut McComb’s lead to 24-20 with 6:25 left in the third quarter before the Lady Tigers responded with a 10-0 spurt capped by Mylisha Hammond’s layup to take a 14-point lead with 3:20 left in the third quarter.
South Pike held McComb to just five points in the final quarter, with Destiney Gordon’s bucket plus the foul tieing the game at 39 with 4:12 left.
Washington’s layup put South Pike up 44-39 with two minutes left before Moriah Hurst’s bucket with one minute left put the game out of reach at 48-39.
“We got cold again with as much shooting as we do,” said McComb head coach Charlton Grey. “They run a 1-3-1. I have the plays to run against that 1-3-1. We did not execute. We had a great first half. If we can stay focused and stop internally hurting ourselves, we'll be fine.
“This is a rivalry game. This is like Duke and North Carolina,” Grey continued. “Coach Harrell does a great job with his girls. I think we do a pretty good job with our girls. It comes down to execution.”
Hurst had a game-high 18 points for the Lady Eagles, followed by Washington with 16 points.
Other scorers were: Tomia Mitchell (6), Gordon (5), Deidra Johnson (3) and Alexandreail Jackson (2).
Hammond, Smith and Dixon each had 10 points for McComb.
Other scorers were: Kevanique Butler (6), Chardonay Williams (3), Kayla Brumfield (2) and Shayla Felder (1).
“This is the time you have to start playing well,” Harrell said. “This should be a momentum builder, but you can't get too overconfident because we know from playing in this district we can get beat by anybody. Everybody is pretty solid. We just have to keep that same intensity and play and take coaching.”
McComb routs South Pike
The South Pike Eagles ran into a buzzsaw Friday night in the form of the homestanding McComb Tigers in a 70-38 loss in the Tiger Den for senior night.
McComb (14-9, 6-4) jumped out to a 22-4 lead and never looked back.
South Pike won the first meeting 46-45 in Magnolia.
“We had energy, and once those guys started doing the little things it clicked,” McComb head coach Leon Harris said. “I really wasn’t surprised. If we had been doing this all season long, this is what this conference would be getting used to — us running away with people because of the pressure defense and our conditioning.
“Not knocking no teams, but if we do the little things with the athletes we have, we can run people off the floor.”
The Tigers led 36-17 at halftime and held a 56-29 lead at the end of the third quarter.
South Pike did not seem to match McComb’s intensity from the opening tip, according to Harrell.
“We couldn't match their energy,” Harrell said. “We didn’t make shots. They had one of those good nights where they were hitting shots. They just outplayed us.”
James Williams led McComb with 16 points, followed closely by Kendrell Martin with 15.
Gary Butler and Venchenza McCray also were in double figures with 13 and 14 points, respectively.
Other scorers were: Terrion Rogers (5), Odess Tobias (3), Javis Moore (2) and Zach Wall (2).
Demarcus Ellzey scored 17 points for South Pike.
Other scorers were: Jalon Andrews (8), Ja’Quarius Lewis (6), Kamarcus Wells (3), Veontae Gardner (2) and Devon Harris (2).
Despite the loss, Harrell said his team had a lot to look forward to.
“We got caught up in the hoopla of the game,” he said. “We’ve been winning all year. All we have to do is take care of business in the district. Put this game behind us and move forward.”
Harris said his team should use this game for confidence heading into the district tournament, which begins tomorrow night.
“Any time we get a win we use that momentum,” he said. “These guys know now it's a brand new season, everybody is 0-0. It doesn’t matter if you’re No. 1 in the state or 300. Everybody has a chance. We just have to keep fighting and keep working.”
