POPLARVILLE, Miss. — The Pearl River men's basketball team had some rust to shake off Saturday afternoon after not playing for nearly 10 days, falling to Itawamba 80-69.
"We played like we've been off for 10 days, to be honest," head coach Chris Oney said. "We were just out of it today. They were the better team — they were more aggressive. We have to get ready for Monday now. Northeast is a talented team."
Pearl River (11-9 overall; 4-2 MACCC) and Itawamba (14-6; 5-1) exchanged blows throughout the opening half. The Indians jumped out to an early 8-5 lead before PRCC responded behind a floater and two free throws from Christian Gilliland (Memphis, Tenn.; ABC Prep) to take a 9-8 advantage.
ICC regained the lead, but Kelan Rich (Pascagoula) answered by finding Jason Talbert (Cleveland; Cleveland Central) in the corner for a catch-and-shoot 3-pointer. On the ensuing possession, Reece Garrison (Olive Branch) picked an ICC player's pocket and raced coast-to-coast for a reverse layup, giving the Wildcats a 14-11 edge.
Neither team was able to create separation as the half progressed, with the score knotted at 23-23, 27-27 and 29-29. Gilliland put Pearl River back in front with a layup, but Itawamba caught fire late to take a 38-33 lead into the break.
The Wildcats struggled to find a rhythm in the second half but made multiple pushes. Daijon Leatherman (Slidell, La.; Legacy School of Sports and Sciences) grabbed his own miss and scored to trim the deficit to three at 47-44. Shortly after, PRCC pulled within one as Kam Mayfield (Waynesboro; Quitman) finished at the rim and Gilliland knocked down a pair of free throws, 49-48.
Pearl River stayed within striking distance, but the Itawamba offense proved too strong down the stretch as the Indians pulled away for the 80-69 victory.
LEADING THE WAY
Gilliland and Mayfield paced the Wildcats with 19 points apiece. Gilliland added two assists, one steal and one rebound, while Mayfield hauled in six rebounds.
Leatherman rounded out PRCC's double-figure scorers with 14 points and six rebounds.
NEXT UP
Pearl River returns to the court Monday as Northeast travels to Poplarville for a 7:30 p.m. matchup.
TICKETS
Tickets are available at PRCCAthletics.com/Tickets. Tickets purchased in advance are $9, while tickets purchased on game day are $11.
TUNE IN
All home Pearl River basketball games are livestreamed for free at PRCCMedia.com/Gold. Fans who have Roku, Amazon Fire or Apple TV devices can also watch the Wildcat broadcasts by downloading the "Pearl River CC" channel from their app stores.
Games will also be available over the air in Pearl River County by tuning into 1320-AM and 106.9 FM. The radio broadcast is also available at WRJWRadio.com and by downloading the WRJW app.
For the latest on Pearl River Community College athletics, follow us on X (@PRCCAthletics) and Facebook (PRCCAthletics).