The Hancock girls along with both Biloxi squads picked up important wins on Saturday to keep their impressive seasons on the hardwood intact.
The Lady Hawks remained unbeaten on the year moving to a perfect 20-0 with a 45-37 win over powerful West Jones in Meridian at the “Girls Rock Classic”. Brooklyn Cuevas was named the MVP in the contest as she finished with 23 points.
The Lady Mustangs dropped to 16-2 overall suffering just their second loss of the season.
Meanwhile, in the same event, the Biloxi Lady Indians pulled out a convincing 64-36 win over Hutchison High of Memphis as Shanel Corpuz and Zaniya Johnson formed a dynamic duo that dominated the Tennessee team. Both Corpuz and Johnson registered double-doubles in the win, as the senior Corpuz poured in a game-high 26 points, pulled down 10 rebounds and dished out five assists while the freshman Johnson tallied 26 points and grabbed 11 boards and earned MVP honors in the game. The win moves Biloxi to an impressive 17-2 on the season, with the only two losses coming to unbeaten Hancock as well as powerful Tupelo on the road. The Lady Golden Wave is 15-1 on the season after nipping host Meridian on Saturday 59-56.
The Biloxi boys traveled to Pontotoc along with Moss Point on Saturday to compete in the “Tangle on the Trail”. The Indians knocked off powerful Starkville, whom many considered the number one team in the state, 60-58 as Duran Parish converted a pair of free throws late to seal the win.
Parish tallied a game-high 20 points in the win, while James Turner added 12 points for Biloxi, which moved to a nifty 14-1 on the season.
Also, Horn Lake knocked off Moss Point 66-35 Moss Point 35 as Kyren Pernell led HLHS with 21 points but Kendrick Osby poured in a game-high 23 points to pace the Tigers.
In Pascagoula on Saturday, at the Raising Canes Panther Classic, the Gulfport Admirals picked up their third close win over the home-standing Panthers this season pulling out a 56-53 victory as Matt Krass tallied a game-high 23 points and Amir Abdul-Rauf added 10 points to the winning cause. Dorian McMillan paced Pascagoula with 22 points.
Gulfport has now beaten Pascagoula twice at home and once on the road. The Admirals stand 17-3 on the year, while the Panthers are 14-4.
The Pascagoula girls tipped Saturday’s event off with a 51-34 win over Lawrence County. The Pass Christian boys beat Quitman 65-60 in other action at the Canes Classic.
Both Pascagoula teams opened Region 7-6A play Friday night against D’Iberville as the Panthers roughed up the Warriors 52-31 while the Lady Warriors nipped PHS 36-32.
Kelan Rich led the Panthers with 21 points and Robert Millender chipped in with 12 points. The D’Iberville boys are 0-2 in league play, while the Lady Warriors stand 2-0 in the region.
