MERIDIAN, Miss. — The Pearl River women's basketball team turned a halftime adjustment into a dominant second half of basketball Monday night, pulling away from Meridian for a 70-49 road victory.
With the victory, PRCC remains tied atop the conference with rival Gulf Coast at 9-1.
"At halftime, we talked about being confident in our shot," head coach Shanae Govan-Williams said. "We knew that they were going to play in the 2-3 zone. We settled for the three balls in the first half, so we decided to play inside out. We got some passes down low and kicked it out for some shots.
"We buckled down on defense as well and outrebounded them. We knew that was another way we could win the game. The girls really bought into that. I feel like we bought into the gameplan"
The Wildcats now prepare for a matchup with rival Jones College Thursday night inside Marvin R. White Coliseum. The game will serve as PRCC's alumni night and breast cancer awareness night. Alumni are invited our and are asked to wear pink. Tipoff is set for 5:30 p.m.
"There are going to be a lot of emotions because it is a rivalry game. Jones' new coaching staff is doing a great job, and it'll be two totally new staffs going head-to-head," Govan-Williams said. "We're hoping to have a lot of alumni back so we can showcase to them what we've been doing. We're also planning to honor those who have fought and continue to fight breast cancer."
Pearl River (16-5 overall; 9-1 MACCC) caught fire to open the night against Meridian (19-5; 7-3). Madison Hughes (Olive Branch; Center Hill) opened the scoring with the first five points, nailing a 3-pointer and a pull-up jumper from the free-throw line. The Wildcats pushed things to 8-1 when Cy'Nara Robinson (McGehee, Ark.) blocked a shot that eventually resulted in a Jahanna Wilson (Jackson; Callaway) corner 3-pointer. Mattison Bell (Philadelphia; Choctaw Central) capped the early run with a long ball to make it 11-3.
Meridian flipped the script on the Wildcats following the hot start, fighting all the way back to even things up before eventually taking a 24-16 advantage into the second quarter.
The second quarter was slow for both teams, but it allowed the Wildcats to scrap back as they outscored the Eagles 8-4 to trail 28-24 at the midway point. When the second half began, PRCC rallied to take a 30-28 lead following a Chauncey Dixon (Leroy, Ala.; McIntosh) layup. Meridian briefly retook the lead, but following a Wilson 3-pointer to make it 33-31, it was all Wildcats.
Pearl River went on to outscore the Eagles 24-11 in the third quarter to head into the final 10 minutes of the night ahead 48-39. Nothing changed in the fourth as the Wildcats continued to put the pedal to the floor, going on to win the matchup 70-49.
LEADING THE WAY
Robinson finished with her eighth double-double of the season, posting an impressive 17 points and hauling in 14 rebounds.
"Cy'Nara just did what she always does," Govan-Williams said. "She was our catalyst, giving us the ability to stretch things out."
Hughes finished the night with 14 points, while Bell added 12. Jae'la Smith (Vicksburg; Porter's Chapel) rounded out those in double figures with 10 points.
Wilson had an incredible night, finishing with nine points, 12 assists, and seven steals.
"Jahanna was literally our floor general tonight," Govan-Williams said. "She may not have scored a ton, but it was huge to get those assists and be our quarterback on offense."
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).