It is way too early, and a lot of basketball still left to play for anyone to be thinking about the Big House.
Nevertheless, the possibility of a rematch at the Mississippi Coliseum for all the marbles in Class 6A was in the back of everyone’s mind when the Pascagoula boys paid a visit to the Hub City to face Hattiesburg Thursday night in a clash of undefeated teams.
When an up-and-down the court thriller was done, it was the Panthers who left town a 56-52 winner over the Tigers at Watkins Gymnasium.
Pascagoula remained undefeated at 5-0 overall; HHS suffered its first loss after three victories to open the season.
“We’re tested,” said Pascagoula coach Lorenzen Wright. “A lot of these guys are players who came off the bench and played a lot for us last year, so they’ve been in the fight.
“But we’re missing four or five players (who are still playing football), so to come in here and get a win over a really good, really hard Hattiesburg team in a playoff-type atmosphere, with a good crowd, makes this a good win for us.”
It was really two games in one, as Hattiesburg opened up a big lead early in the second quarter, only to see ’Goula rally and eventually take over the game.
The Tigers scored the first seven points of the game, led 18-8 after the first quarter, and quickly added two more field goals early in the second period to lead 22-8.
“We started playing together, like the coaches were telling us,” said Rich. “A first, we were just going one-on-one. Once we started playing together, passing the ball more, looking for better shots, things started to fall into place for us.”
Hattiesburg junior Ethan Long was an unstoppable force, scoring all of the Tigers’ first seven points on a baseline drive, a 3-pointer from the top of the key, then a fast-break layup that got Wright off the bench for a time out.
“We came out aggressive and hit shots,” said Long. “But we kind of fell apart and let them go on a run. If we’d finished the game the way we started, it would have been better for us, but that’s what happened.
“They trapped us, and ran and jumped full-court in the passing lanes, and we made some dumb passes, they got steals, and made layups and dunks out of it.”
But, as Wright said, the Panthers have been tested, and they responded with a 14-1 run that got them back in the game.
“The better team took over, and tonight they were the better team,” said Hattiesburg coach Ernie Watson. “We didn’t execute like we needed to in the second half. We didn’t get to the line enough, although when we did, we made them.”
Indeed, when Hattiesburg got to the foul line, the Tigers were usually money, converting 15 of 18 free throws.
But Pascagoula held its own at the line, hitting 10 of 15 foul shots, so the Tigers’ advantage at the free-throw line wasn’t significant enough to change the outcome.
Rich got ‘Goula going with a 16-footer from the left key, then senior Justin Roque swished a 3-ball from the left corner, and quickly drew a technical foul for what was judged to be taunting.
“I didn’t really say anything to the bench,” said Roque. “All I did was do a little celebration. I didn’t look at anybody.
“That kind of motivated us to go on a run. We’re a team of runs, and when we get on these runs, we’re a pretty good team.”
That seemed to galvanize the Panthers as they picked up the pace defensively, and denied Hattiesburg the shots it was making in the early going.
After converting 7 of 15 shots (46.7 percent) from the field in the first quarter, the Tigers were just 3 for 11 (27.3 percent) in the second quarter. Still, Hattiesburg maintained its lead, and took a 28-27 lead into the locker room at halftime.
“I thought in the first quarter, we came out and played like a bunch of individuals,” said Wright. “And that was the style they wanted us to play. We came together as a team, locked down defensively, and we did that in the second quarter.
“We were only down one at half, and we played terrible in the first quarter.”
‘Goula turned up the pressure even higher in the third quarter, forcing 9 turnovers in the period, one more than the Tigers had shot attempts.
After the Tigers turned it over twice, and the Panthers once, Rich drew a foul, sank both free throws for what would be the only lead change of the game.
And the Panthers didn’t let up. A one-and-done on Hattiesburg’s end, set up Roque in transition for a 3-point shot from the right side, then junior Blake Nettles capped a decisive 12-2 run with a slam-dunk off a fast break to give ‘Goula a 39-30 lead, its biggest of the night.
While Long was the show for Hattiesburg, finishing with 26 points, the Panthers spread the wealth. Rich and Nettles each had 12 points, along with senior Quey’Sean Taylor, who scored 10 of his 12 points in the fourth quarter.
“We’ve got a lot of options on the court,” said Rich. “And when we all of our football players back, we’ll have more weapons.”
‘Goula needed those points, because the Tigers rallied late in the third quarter and into the final period. Twice, Hattiesburg cut the margin to two, and had a chance to tie or take the lead both times.
“We’ll get better,” said Watson. “When the second team gets here, our football players, we’ll be fine. We have the courage to play games like this, we just need to execute our fundamentals better, and know how to step up against team like (Pascagoula).”
But both times, the Panthers answered. A 3-ball by Nettles allowed Pascagoula to rebuild its nine-point lead.
Again, the Tigers pulled the Panthers back in, mostly at the line, with Long hitting a pair of foul shots, and junior Zavian Martin hit four out of four, pulling Hattiesburg within 51-49 with 1:10 to play in the game.
But Pascagoula finished strong, converting its last four shots from the field, including a clinching three-point play from Taylor on a fast-break layup and a foul shot with 29.4 seconds left.
“We’re playing a tough schedule anyway,” said Wright. “We need to play a tough one to get ready for our region, and for the playoffs, so that’s what we’re playing for.”
If both teams win the top seed in their region tournaments, they would be on opposite sides of the bracket, meaning a rematch in the playoffs wouldn’t happen until the Class 6A state championship game.
“We’d love the opportunity to play them again in the postseason,” said Watson. “I think we’ll meet again.”
Both teams will be on the road for games next week. Pascagoula has a game Monday at Warren Central, while Hattiesburg travels to Columbus on Monday and Picayune on Tuesday.
Pascagoula also won the girls game in another thriller 51-49. The Panthers opened up an eight-point lead, 36-28, at the end of the third quarter, but Hattiesburg went on a 10-1 run to take the lead.
Sophomore Massyah Thomas put ‘Goula back in front 43-42 with a drive down the lane with 2:33 to play, and Thomas closed it out in the final seconds with a pair of foul shots, giving the Panthers a 51-47 lead with 10.8 seconds to play.
Thomas had 22 points to lead Pascagoula (2-2), and senior Samaha Johnson added 14 for the Panthers. Senior Kelby Holliman had 12 points to top Hattiesburg (0-3).
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