POPLARVILLE, Miss. — Pearl River women's basketball has a little more to be thankful for as they head into Thanksgiving break after taking down Hinds 92-37.
"We broke it down into different segments and showed them where we needed to be, where to trap and what we were looking for," Coach Shanae Govan-Williams said. "I thought we executed that well today. I think our entire team showed up and played well."
Pearl River (5-1 overall) never trailed against Hinds (1-3), opening the game on a 7–2 run sparked by five quick points from Mattison Bell (Philadelphia; Choctaw Central) — a long jumper followed by a corner 3-pointer. Madison Hughes (Olive Branch; Center Hill) added a layup and then assisted Bell on another 3-pointer to give the Wildcats a 16–8 lead at the end of the first quarter.
The second quarter followed a similar script, with Pearl River scoring the first five points before a Hinds 3-pointer made the game 21-11. Cy'Nara Robinson (McGehee, Ark.) then took over, scoring six straight to extend the lead to 27–11. Five additional Wildcats scored in the quarter, and Robinson finished the period with 10 points as Pearl River outscored Hinds 28–12 to take a 44–20 halftime lead.
Pearl River continued its momentum in the third quarter, outscoring Hinds 26–15. Jahanna Wilson (Jackson; Callaway) opened the half with back-to-back 3-pointers, and Alana Smith (Southaven) matched her with two of her own while adding four free throws. The Wildcats went into the fourth leading 70-35.
Pearl River turned in its best defensive quarter in the fourth, holding Hinds to just two points. Six Wildcats scored in the final period, highlighted by 3-pointers from Wilson and Smith. In all, 10 Wildcats scored as Pearl River closed out a dominant 92-37 win.
LEADING THE WAY
Four Wildcats finished in double figures, with Robinson leading the way with 18 points. She was active on the boards all afternoon, pulling down eight rebounds — five of them on the offensive end.
Smith followed with 15 points, including three 3-pointers, and added a pair of rebounds. Hughes wasn't far behind, scoring 13 points and coming up just shy of a double-double with nine rebounds. She also handed out four assists.
Bell rounded out the double-digit scorers with 10 points to go along with four rebounds and four assists.
Atesa Johnson (Lewisville, Ark.; Lafayette) and Wilson provided an additional spark with nine points each. Wilson did all her scoring from long range, knocking down three 3-pointers, while Johnson scored three layups and hit three free throws.
Toniah Watts (Terry) matched Hughes for the team lead on the glass with nine rebounds. She also chipped in four points on an efficient 2-of-3 shooting day.
NEXT UP
The Wildcats get a break until Thursday, December 4th, when they travel to Tanner, Ala., to take on Calhoun at 5 p.m.
For the latest on Pearl River Community College athletics, follow us on X (@PRCCAthletics) and Facebook (PRCCAthletics).