BILOXI – In a game that saw 42 fouls and 47 free throw attempts, Petal came up short in a 66-62 defense battle against Harrison Central on Saturday night.
According to Todd Kimble, the Panthers failed to execute in the final minutes of the fourth quarter.
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"We didn't execute down the line, and that cost us," Petal coach Todd Kimble said. "We made some crucial mistakes defensively on two possessions in particular. (Harrison Central) did a good job of taking us out of our stuff. We just didn't do a good job, and we panicked a little bit in the last five minutes. They are a good basketball team, and I said it before they are good enough to win the whole thing."
The Panthers, who made their farthest playoff appearance in school history, led Harrison Central 14-10 at the end of the first quarter. However, the Red Rebels found momentum in the second quarter as Petal gave up several turnovers. The Rebels were able to go on an 11-0 run and take the lead at 23-19.
But before halftime, Petal managed to tie the game with back-to-back free throw trips to tie the game at the half 23-23.
In the third quarter, Harrison Central nailed four 3-pointers and took as much as a 10-point lead over Petal.
"Third quarter they came out and made some shots and I'm talking some contested shots like they made against Oak Grove in that game," Kimble said. "I haven't seen them make those shots all year, but hey, when you are making them in this game and on this stage, then it says something about the guys shooting."
Trailing 42-32, the Panthers answered in the final minutes of the quarter and eventually took a 46-44 lead at the start of the fourth quarter.
"I think at the end of the third, we kind of got it coming back a little when we were down four or six at the end of the third quarter," Kimble said. "In the fourth, we started making some shots. We gave up some offensive rebounds and put backs on that end. We missed some free throws, but it was just back-and-forth the whole game."
A key part of Petal's offensive success was Jamar Jenkins. Jenkins scored 14 of his 21 team-leading points in the second half. Caleb McGill also found success inside the paint as he scored 15 points, but the crucial difference was Harrison Central's ability to hold Treylan Smith to just two points heading into the fourth quarter.
"If you are watching that game close and I know you have 10 guys on the court and the officials can't see everything, every time but they were literally holding his jersey and made it as hard as they possibly could for him to get touches," Kimble said. "They did a good job of taking him out of everything. Caleb had some great plays, but he had some plays that were unlike him a lot. I thought we defended well enough to win, but I don't think we executed well enough to win."
Smith scored eight points in the fourth quarter and was vital in helping Petal bring the game to win a one-point deficit at 61-60. But Harrison Central pulled ahead as they reached the free throw line six times in the final minute-and-a-half. By the end of the night, Harrison Central finished 17-of-26 behind the line while Petal was 15-of-21.
"You have to make (late free throws), and you have to make stops," Kimble said. "When it gets down to that part of the game, and as close as it was, you have to get stops. On the offensive end, you have to make sure that you are putting it in the hole, and that it's productive. We just had too many empty trips to get anything out of them.
"Defensively, with the way that they play is not fundamental, but it's tough. They just got up in us in every position and we got into trouble coming screens and that killed us offensively. Late in the game I think it got us frustrated and we kind of just went away from what we were doing. In games like this, if you don't execute late, then it's hard to win."
Despite the loss, the Panther's senior class left its mark with the program. In the last four years, the senior class made three consecutive trips to the playoffs and won a combined 69 games.
"(This season was) unbelievable," Kimble said. "In 74 basketball games, they lost five home game and made it to the second round of the playoffs two years in a row and the third round this year. This senior class has done something that'll be hard for any other group to duplicate. They are great kids. It's been an unbelievable job to coach these guys."
Harrison Central 66, Petal 62
At Mississippi Coast Coliseum
6A Quarterfinals
Harrison Central (26-4) – Demarius Coleman 3 6-6 14, Mikel King 2 0-1 6, Cameron Haynes 4 3-4 13, Javier Simmons 0 0-1 0, Sam Murray II 2 3-7 7, Carlous Williams 4 1-2 10, Joshua Travis 1 0-0 2, Jacobi Moore 5 4-5 14. Field Goals: 21, Free Throws: 17-26, Total Points: 66.
Petal (17-8) – Caleb McGill 5 5-5 15, Marcel Blackwell 3 1-2 8, Treylan Smith 3 4-7 10, Jamar Jenkins 7 3-5 21, Jakalan Brown 0 2-2 2, Mitchell Guyse 1 0-0 3. Field Goals 19, Free Throws: 15-21, Total Points: 62.
HC 10 13 21 22 - 66
PETAL 14 9 16 23 - 62
3-Pointers – HC 7 (Coleman, King, Haynes, Williams, Petal 6 (Jenkins 4, Blackwell, Guyse). Team Fouls: HC 24, Petal 18. Fouled Out: Murray
BILOXI – In a game that saw 42 fouls and 47 free throw attempts, Petal came up short in a defense battle against Harrison Central on Saturday night, 66-62.
According to Todd Kimble, the Panthers failed to execute in the final minutes of the fourth quarter.
"We didn't execute down the line, and that cost us," Petal coach Todd Kimble said. "We made some crucial mistakes defensively on two possessions in particular. (Harrison Central) did a good job of taking us out of our stuff. We just didn't do a good job, and we panicked a little bit in the last five minutes. They are a good basketball team, and I said it before they are good enough to win the whole thing."
The Panthers, who made their farthest playoff appearance in school history, led Harrison Central 14-10 at the end of the first quarter. However, the Red Rebels found momentum in the second quarter as Petal gave up several turnovers. The Rebels were able to go on an 11-0 run and take the lead at 23-19.
But before halftime, Petal managed to tie the game with back-to-back free throw trips to tie the game at the half 23-23.
In the third quarter, Harrison Central nailed four 3-pointers and took as much as a 10-point lead over Petal.
"Third quarter they came out and made some shots and I'm talking some contested shots like they made against Oak Grove in that game," Kimble said. "I haven't seen them make those shots all year, but hey, when you are making them in this game and on this stage, then it says something about the guys shooting."
Trailing 42-32, the Panthers answered in the final minutes of the quarter and eventually took a 46-44 lead at the start of the fourth quarter.
"I think at the end of the third, we kind of got it coming back a little when we were down four or six at the end of the third quarter," Kimble said. "In the fourth, we started making some shots. We gave up some offensive rebounds and put backs on that end. We missed some free throws, but it was just back-and-forth the whole game."
A key part of Petal's offensive success was Jamar Jenkins. Jenkins scored 14 of his 21 team-leading points in the second half. Caleb McGill also found success inside the paint as he scored 15 points, but the crucial difference was Harrison Central's ability to hold Treylan Smith to just two points heading into the fourth quarter.
"If you are watching that game close and I know you have 10 guys on the court and the officials can't see everything, every time but they were literally holding his jersey and made it as hard as they possibly could for him to get touches," Kimble said. "They did a good job of taking him out of everything. Caleb had some great plays, but he had some plays that were unlike him a lot. I thought we defended well enough to win, but I don't think we executed well enough to win."
Smith scored eight points in the fourth quarter and was vital in helping Petal bring the game to win a one-point deficit at 61-60. But Harrison Central pulled ahead as they reached the free throw line six times in the final minute-and-a-half. By the end of the night, Harrison Central finished 17-of-26 behind the line while Petal was 15-of-21.
"You have to make (late free throws), and you have to make stops," Kimble said. "When it gets down to that part of the game, and as close as it was, you have to get stops. On the offensive end, you have to make sure that you are putting it in the hole, and that it's productive. We just had too many empty trips to get anything out of them.
"Defensively, with the way that they play is not fundamental, but it's tough. They just got up in us in every position and we got into trouble coming screens and that killed us offensively. Late in the game I think it got us frustrated and we kind of just went away from what we were doing. In games like this, if you don't execute late, then it's hard to win."
Despite the loss, the Panther's senior class left its mark with the program. In the last four years, the senior class made three consecutive trips to the playoffs and won a combined 69 games.
"(This season was) unbelievable," Kimble said. "In 74 basketball games, they lost five home game and made it to the second round of the playoffs two years in a row and the third round this year. This senior class has done something that'll be hard for any other group to duplicate. They are great kids. It's been an unbelievable job to coach these guys."
Photo by Mark Magee
Harrison Central 66, Petal 62
At Mississippi Coast Coliseum
6A Quarterfinals
Harrison Central (26-4) – Demarius Coleman 3 6-6 14, Mikel King 2 0-1 6, Cameron Haynes 4 3-4 13, Javier Simmons 0 0-1 0, Sam Murray II 2 3-7 7, Carlous Williams 4 1-2 10, Joshua Travis 1 0-0 2, Jacobi Moore 5 4-5 14. Field Goals: 21, Free Throws: 17-26, Total Points: 66.
Petal (17-8) – Caleb McGill 5 5-5 15, Marcel Blackwell 3 1-2 8, Treylan Smith 3 4-7 10, Jamar Jenkins 7 3-5 21, Jakalan Brown 0 2-2 2, Mitchell Guyse 1 0-0 3. Field Goals 19, Free Throws: 15-21, Total Points: 62.
HC 10 13 21 22 - 66
PETAL 14 9 16 23 - 62
3-Pointers – HC 7 (Coleman, King, Haynes, Williams, Petal 6 (Jenkins 4, Blackwell, Guyse). Team Fouls: HC 24, Petal 18. Fouled Out: Murray
