February 11, 2022
In an electric atmosphere in Brackeen-Wood Gymnasium on February 10, the East Central Community College Lady Warrior basketball team won their third straight contest, a thrilling 75-69 overtime victory over No. 21 Jones College. With the victory, ECCC moved to 10-9, 6-6 overall, which is good for 10th place in the current MACCC standings. Jones College falls to 14-6, 9-3 on the year. With just two regular-season games remaining the Lady Warriors are on the hunt for a MACCC playoff berth.
A 9-0 Jones College run in the opening five minutes of play had the Lady Warriors down early, but hustle plays and a pair of big free throws from Mer'Cades Miller (McComb) kept the Lady Warriors within striking distance, 16-9, going into the second.
The second quarter turned into a shootout as both squads offenses got the hot hand. The Lady Warriors came out of the break firing and quickly went on a 9-2 scoring run with baskets from Myeisha Scott (Jackson), Sylvia Jones (Brighton, Tenn.), and a big three-pointer from Kaedre Denson (Philadelphia). The gut-punch offensive attack knotted the game at 18-all with eight minutes to go until halftime. The next five minutes were a back-and-forth affair as the teams traded baskets by attacking the rim. Some late fouls sent the Lady Bobcats to the free-throw line and they cashed in as the Bobcat lead grew to five, 37-32, going into the half. Despite trailing, the Lady Warriors outscored Jones, 23-21, in the second and took a lot of energy to the locker room.
In the third, the Lady Warriors watched the Lady Bobcats lead grow to double-digits in the early minutes as a 7-0 run pushed the advantage to 44-32. The Lady Warriors finally got on the scoreboard with just four minutes remaining in the third with a Scott free throw. ECCC continued to attack the basket and not only draw fouls, but capitalized on the trips to the free-throw stripe nailing four straight. The quarter was rounded with a stellar three-pointer from Faith Guy (Enterprise), but ECCC trailed 46-42 going into the final 10 minutes of regulation.
The Lady Bobcats held on to their lead until the final three minutes of the fourth, and with just 3:17 on the clock, the Lady Bobcats were up by seven, 58-51. However, Cori Keats(Philadelphia) got the momentum going with a knock-down three-pointer to pull the lead to just four. Sophomore Mirial Cannon (Madison) followed suit and hit her own three-pointer on the next possession, bringing the lead to one, 58-57. The fans were on their feet as Denson hauled in a board on the ensuing Jones possession, and Cannon erupted the gym as she drained yet another three-pointer, the third in the row for ECCC, to give the Lady Warriors their first lead of the night since the opening basket with just 1:04 to play, 60-58. The Lady Bobcats got a basket back in the final seconds, and ECCC's potential game-winner at the buzzer rimmed out, sending the game to overtime.
In overtime, ECCC was quick to the board with a great basket from Scott. Cannon grew that lead to five, 65-60, with another massive three-pointer. The momentum, and the ruckus crowd, were fully in the Lady Warriors' favor over the final minutes as ECCC went on to hang on to that lead.
Cannon's 19-point performance led the team and was a career-high for the sophomore. Scott finished with yet another double-double as she scored 15 and brought down 15 rebounds. Sylvia Jones finished with 12 points and eight assists, while Denson posted 11. Sakyia White led Jones College with 20 points and 12 boards, and Jordan Clark netted 18. ECCC outrebounded Jones, 36-34, and shot 47 percent from the floor, including 7-of-15 from beyond the arc, and 20-of-26 from the free-throw line.
The Lady Warriors travel to Mississippi Delta (5-13, 1-9) on Monday night for a 6 p.m. tipoff, before closing out the regular season at home on Thursday, February 17, against Northeast, also at 6 p.m.
