ELLISVILLE, Miss. — Pearl River men's basketball gave No. 4 Jones College all it could handle in the Region 23 Championship game but came up short against the Bobcats on their home court, 74-61.
The Wildcats finish up the season 24-7. PRCC finished the regular season second in the MACCC with a record of 11-3.
"This group proved to us what you can do when you really care about each other," head coach Chris Oney said. "They gave this program every ounce they had on and off the floor. They did everything we asked of them.
"It's not fun to finish in second, but we gave them all we could. We left it all out there. They're a really good team. I told some of those guys that I think they have a team that can go out there and represent this conference well."
Pearl River (24-6 overall) used an early eight-point outburst from Jayden Sampson (Cleveland; Cleveland Central) to take a 10-4 lead. The freshman knocked down a pair of floaters and fought between two defenders for a score in the swing.
The Wildcats led from the 17:15 mark in the opening half until 52 seconds remained. Jones College (30-3) took the lead late and walked into the break ahead 32-32.
Jones grew its lead to seven, 43-36, early in the second half. The Wildcats got as close as two points at 52-50 with an 8-point run. Kedrick Osby (Moss Point) went 2-for-2 from the free-throw line, Dylan Sanders (Aurora, Colo.) drilled a corner 3-pointer on the fastbreak, Krystian Lewis (Monroe, La.; Wossman) hit nothing but net on a long-range 3-pointer and Mason Lewis (Stockbridge, Ga.; Woodland) worked Joah Chappelle (Atlanta, Ga.; Dutchtown) open for a two-handed slam during the swing.
Unfortunately for the Wildcats, Jones caught fire late in the contest and went on to win the game 74-61.
LEADING THE WAY
Chappelle wrapped up the night with 20 points and eight rebounds. He also had two blocks and an assist. Krystian Lewis had 13 points, seven rebounds and four assists.
Sampson scored 11 points and hauled in three rebounds. Osby had 10 points and seven rebounds.
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