Photo: King George of Olive Branch finishes a layup in the first half of the Conquistadors’ 64-57 state 6A semifinal victory Thursday afternoon. (Bob Bakken/desotocountynews.com)
OLIVE BRANCH 64, HATTIESBURG 57: Reece Garrison led four Conquistadors in double figures with 15 points in a game that put Olive Branch back in the 6A state championship game for the second straight year. The Quistors will meet Ridgeland at 8 p.m. Saturday in the championship game in Jackson.
Olive Branch coach Eric Rombaugh expected Hattiesburg to come out and try to pressure the Quistors, also knowing that being able to handle that pressure would be a key to the contest.
“They’re a team that puts a lot of pressure on the ball, so they knew that they were going to try and make us play fast, which isn’t a bad thing because we like to play fast,” Rombaugh said. “Our main thing was to handle the pressure and then set up and run our offense.”
Hattiesburg took the early lead at 15-14 after one quarter, leading by as much as four points in the opening eight minutes of play. But Olive Branch used a strong second quarter, holding the Tigers to just seven points before halftime to take a 29-22 lead going into the halftime break. Tommy Callicutt led the Conquistadors with five points and 10 rebounds in the first half, and ended with a double-double of 10 points and a dominating 18 rebounds. The combination of Callicutt and Garrison ended up being too difficult for Hattiesburg to handle.
“Their IQ of the game is so high and they understand what we’re trying to do,” Rombaugh said. “They’re seeing things and they’re connecting and playing off each other in a way that there’s no way I could call that play from the sidelines.”
After Hattiesburg got within five points at 45-40 after three quarters, Olive Branch was able to push the advantage to 55-43, using a six-point run after a timeout to create the bulge with 3:40 left in the game. The 12-point lead was the largest lead of the contest.
The Tigers made one final push to get within 60-57 with 32 seconds remaining but the Quistors scored the final four points for the victory, punctuated by a King George dunk as the buzzer sounded. George finished the game with 12 points and Xavier Poplar threw in 10 more.
Olive Branch outshot Hattiesburg 49.1-to-40 percent in the victory, and led by Callicutt’s dominance on the boards, outrebounded the Tigers 38-28.
Ethan Long led Hattiesburg with 19 points and James Griffin added 18.
Ridgeland ousted Pascagoula from the tournament later Thursday afternoon 69-62 to next challenge the Quistors on Saturday night.
WEST JONES (B) 53, OLIVE BRANCH 50: The Lady Quistors hit the first basket of the game with a first quarter three-pointer, but the Lady Mustangs put a run of points together and ended with a 9-7 end of the first quarter lead.
After that it was West Jones keeping the Olive Branch squad at bay and not allowing the Lady Quistors to take a lead as the 30-4 Lady Mustangs advanced to the 6A state championship game Saturday evening at Mississippi Coliseum in Jackson. Olive Branch finishes the year with arecord of 22-9.
The game tied four times and leads changed three times, but most of that came early in the game until the Laurel squad took as much as a nine-point lead in the final quarter of play. A three-point margin was the largest Lady Quistor lead in the contest.
“We were always kind of in an uphill battle and a downhill struggle,” said Olive Branch coach Jason Thompson. “They (West Jones) kind of created that and put us in that position, and our job was to respond to it and give us a shot at it as well. The shots didn’t fall, we didn’t make enough plays, and we came up a little short.”
Freshman Vadaija Pimpton and Caleigh Nix led Olive Branch in scoring. Pimpton threw in 19 points and added 12 rebounds. Nix, just a seventh-grader, finished with 17 points and nine boards.
“Those kids have been performing and playing in this type of atmosphere and environment all year long, so this was no different for them right now,” Thompson said.
Statistics also showed how even the game, which began at 9 a.m., turned out to be. Each team shot 33 percent for the contest with West Jones holding the edge in three-point shooting at 40-17.4 percent. Olive Branch did better at the free throw line at 71.4-50 percent. Points in the paint were even at 20 and West Jones held a 17-14 edge in points off turnovers. The Lady Mustangs also scored 15 second-chance points against 11 for Olive Branch.
“The kids played hard and gave us a chance, and we laid it on the line,” Thompson remarked. “The kids, I think, grew up, learned a whole lot, and hoping we can use this learning thing that we had experienced right here, and we can come back and try it again next year.”
Jakera Ducksworth was the leading scorer for West Jones, also with 19 points.
Thursday, Feb. 27
Prep boys basketball
MHSAA 6A state semifinals – Mississippi Coliseum
Olive Branch 64, Hattiesburg 57
Prep girls basketball
MHSAA 6A state semifinals – Mississippi Coliseum
West Jones 53, Olive Branch 50
Prep baseball
Lake Cormorant 12, North Delta 9
Five Tool High School Festival, Dallas, Texas
Magnolia Heights 3, Highland Park, Texas 1
Magnolia Heights 8, Jesuit Prep, Texas 4
Perfect Game Showdown, Hoover, Ala.
Lewisburg 10, Redun, Ga. 0
DeSoto Central 6, Chelsea, Ala. 5
Prep softball
Lewisburg 10, Southaven 0 (5 innings-combined no-hitter by Lexi Edmiston and Sienna Norman)
