Thursday sports page: Gators, Mustangs split regular season hoops finales
Photo: Lake Cormorant’s Jayden Smith (2) looks for driving room against the Center Hill defense with Smith’s teammate Blake Beal (15) ready to assist. (Bob Bakken/desotocountynews.com)
For Lake Cormorant and Center Hill basketball teams, Thursday’s basketball games were a final tuneup ahead of next week’s Region 1-6A tournaments at Olive Branch High School.
Lake Cormorant’s Gators, led by Xadrian Gilliland’s 22 points, spoiled Senior Night for Center Hill seniors Malachi Stansfield and Deaundre Bailey in a 62-50 victory, after senior Madison Hughes’ 17 points paced the Lady Mustangs to a 54-45 win against the Lady Gators. It was a night for Hughes and fellow seniors Karol Key and Zahnaria Mays to be recognized by friends, family, fellow students, and coach Emily Owens.
“All three of them have played for me all four years and all three of them have brought something new to the program,” Owens said. “They’ve always been really committed and are just Center Hill kids in the way they act, the way they play, and the way they are in the classroom. I couldn’t ask for a better senior leadership group.”
(B) Lake Cormorant 62, Center Hill 50: The Gators jumped out to a 12-2 lead in the first quarter and 16-11 at the quarter’s end, led by Michael Banks’ seven points. Dallas Williams pair of baskets helped cut the margin to five points at the end of the quarter.
The five-point difference quickly became 12 in the first two minutes of the second quarter for the Gators, a quarter that ended with Lake Cormorant leading 35-18. The Mustangs were held to seven points in the final eight minutes before halftime with Williams leading their efforts with six points in the half. Meanwhile, Gilliiland scored 10 points in the second quarter and 12 for the half for Lake Cormorant.
Center Hill made a comeback in the third quarter, coming out with a quick five-point run to open the half and get within 35-23 Gators and 46-36 heading into the fourth quarter of play. Stansfield warmed up after halftime with a pair of three-pointers and 10 points in the quarter for the Mustangs. But Devyn Walker provided eight of his 10 points in the fourth quarter to help seal the win for the Gators.
In addition to Gilliland’s 22 points, Lake Cormorant got 11 from Michael Banks and 10 from Walker. Stansfield finished with 15 points for Center Hill, all but two coming in the second half and Williams ended up with 14 points.
(G) Center Hill 54, Lake Cormorant 45 The Lady Mustangs struck for the first eight points of their game Thursday night and it was a corner three at the buzzer that brought Lake Cormorant within 12-9 at the end of the quarter. Crawford scored five of the Lady Gators’ nine points in the quarter while Kennedy Hulbert paced Center Hill with a pair of three-pointers for six points.
Hughes took over in the second quarter with 11 points, including two from distance, to give the Lady Mustangs a 28-26 halftime lead.
Center Hill needed those points because the Lady Gators stayed on the Lady Mustangs, Ka’Meria Kuykendall scored eight points and Greer added five.
Lake Cormorant inched closer in the second half and took their first lead of the game at 37-35 with two minutes left in the third quarters, holding the lead at 39-37 when the quarter ended.
“We did a really good job of keeping our composure and pulling it together when we had to,” said Owens. “We played a little sloppy defensively early on, but they took care of business when they needed to.”
Amariyah Games and Amaya Black each scored five points in the quarter, while Center Hill was held to nine points in the quarter.
Hulbert came through in the fourth quarter with seven of her 16 points in the final eight minutes, while Center Hill’s defense would hold the visitors to just six points.
Hughes finished with 17 points, followed by Hulbert with 16 for Center Hill. Yazlyn Buffington added 12 more. For Lake Cormorant, Kuykendall scored 11 points and three players finished with seven points each.
Wednesday, Jan. 29
Prep bowling
Lewisburg and DeSoto Central boys and girls teams competed in the MHSAA state Class III bowling championships Wednesday. The best finish came from the DeSoto Central girls, which totaled a 2917 score for third place, 147 pins behind state champion Ocean Springs. Lewisburg, at 2838, took sixth place.
Lewisburg was also sixth among the eight boys teams that competed, rolling a 3431 final score, 437 pins behind state champion D’Iberville. DeSoto Central followed in seventh place at 3282.