POPLARVILLE, Miss. — Every possession mattered for the Pearl River men's basketball team Tuesday night as the Wildcats survived a back-and-forth showdown with East Mississippi, 76-65.
With the victory, Pearl River opens MACCC play 3-0 for a third consecutive season.
"We preach about every possession being the most important. The first possession is just as important as the last," head coach Chris Oney said. "They really mattered down the stretch. East Mississippi went to the 1-2-2 zone with three minutes to go and it caught us off guard — my guys really bailed us out there."
Pearl River (11-7 overall; 3-0 MACCC) and East Mississippi (10-9; 0-3) traded baskets throughout the first half, which featured 10 lead changes over the opening 20 minutes. Early on, Christian Gilliland (Memphis, Tenn.; ABC Prep) tied the game with a 3-pointer before finishing a breakaway layup off a floor-length heave from Reece Garrison (Olive Branch) to give the Wildcats a 5-3 edge.
Later, Pearl River briefly found itself in a four-point deficit before quickly flipping it into a lead. Daijon Leatherman (Slidell, La.; Legacy School of Sports and Sciences) converted off a feed from Gilliland, then made an impact on the defensive end with a block. Gilliland followed by drilling a 3-pointer to put the Wildcats ahead, 11-10.
The Wildcats retook the lead at 18-17 and held it until East Mississippi regained control with 4:41 remaining in the half, 27-26. Garrison evened the score at 28-all with 3:34 to play, and Austin Fortune (Atlanta, Ga.; Dutchtown) dished to a cutting Garrison for a layup through traffic. Pearl River carried a 36-32 advantage into the locker room.
The game script did not change to open the second half as neither team could seize firm control. Gilliland knocked down three free throws to push the Wildcats' lead to seven, 45-38, before Pearl River stretched the margin to double digits. Leatherman picked the pocket of an East Mississippi defender and dished ahead to Lazarus Mason (Atlanta, Ga.; Grayson), who stopped just beyond the 3-point line and buried the shot to make it 48-38.
PRCC's advantage evaporated quickly as EMCC trimmed the deficit to one, 48-47. The Wildcats briefly rebuilt a six-point cushion, but East Mississippi clawed back to tie the game and eventually take a 59-57 lead. Fortune delivered a timely feed to Leatherman to even the score before Gilliland knocked down a pair of free throws to put PRCC back in front, 61-59.
Kelan Rich (Pascagoula) helped the Wildcats put the game away down the stretch. Mason passed out of a shot attempt to the crashing Rich, who finished through contact and completed the three-point play. The freshman later knocked down a turnaround fadeaway jumper to make it 72-65 before providing the dagger with a thunderous tomahawk dunk. Pearl River secured the 76-65 victory moments later.
LEADING THE WAY
Gilliland finished with 29 points on 9-for-15 shooting and added three rebounds.
"When you watch Christian play, you don't realize how well he's playing," Oney said. "He's so efficient. You look up and he nearly has 30 points. He's a dynamic player."
Leatherman added 19 points, seven rebounds, three steals and two blocks.
Rich chipped in 11 points, six assists and five rebounds, while Garrison totaled eight points, eight rebounds and six assists.
NEXT UP
Pearl River hits the road Thursday, traveling to Holmes for a 7:30 p.m. tipoff. The game will be livestreamed at HolmesCCMedia.com.
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