ELLISVILLE, Miss. — Things looked bleak for the Pearl River men's basketball team when the halftime buzzer sounded in its Region 23 Quarterfinal matchup with Itawamba.

Pearl River entered the break having trailed for just under 19 minutes of the game, being out-rebounded by 10, and having a few players in foul trouble — but the switch completely flipped in the second half. Pearl River went on to shoot a blazing 62.5 percent and clawed its way all the way back from a 13-point deficit to take down the Indians in overtime, 81-76.

"I've had a lot of really good teams, some average teams and some bad ones," head coach Chris Oney said. "This is the proudest that I've ever been of a team. This is a special group. They believe in each other, and they lift each other up.

"When things aren't going right, forget the strategy. We can't let them want it more than us. These guys responded when it got tough. They wanted it."

The Wildcats now match up with rival Jones College in Thursday's 6 p.m. championship game. The game will be livestreamed at JCBobcats.com/watch.

THE COMEBACK
When the second half began, you could instantly see a different fire underneath the Wildcats. After trailing for nearly 29 minutes of game action, Pearl River finally snatched the lead with 10:03 left in the second half. It was Jayden Sampson (Cleveland; Cleveland Central) who gave the Wildcats a boost of momentum as he ripped down an offensive rebound and knocked down a layup, 55-54. Sampson swatted away a shot attempt on the ensuing defensive effort, which set up a Mason Lewis (Stockbridge, Ga.; Woodland) layup, 57-54. Two free throws by Joah Chappelle (Atlanta, Ga.; Dutchtown) and a left-handed floater by the freshman pushed PRCC ahead by seven, 61-54.

Itawamba stormed back to take a 65-63 lead. The Wildcats kept things tied and even retook the lead with 2:37 remaining, 69-67. Itawamba went ahead one last time with 38.4 seconds remaining, putting PRCC into troublesome territory. Luckily for the Wildcats, Krystian Lewis (Monroe, La.; Wossman) was up for the challenge in the dying seconds of the game. The guard was fed a ball, drove inside and put up a shot attempt. The ball rolled around the rim for what felt like an eternity before falling into the hoop to even things up at 71-71.

Itawamba had an opportunity to make a game-winning shot but turned it over, sending the game into overtime. 

With the teams tied at 73-73 and 2:02 remaining in the five-minute period, Kedrick Osby (Moss Point) started to knock down free throw after free throw. The sophomore went a perfect 6-for-6 down the stretch to hand PRCC a 79-74 lead. The Indians got another basket to fall but were forced to foul. Two huge free throws by Zahir Gutierrez (Olive Branch) sealed the deal, sending PRCC into the championship game with an 81-76 victory.

BY THE NUMBERS
Osby put the team on his back when the Wildcats needed it most. He finished with an incredible 33 points, going 9-for-17 from the field and 6-for-10 from beyond the arc. He hit all nine free throws he attempted. He also had six rebounds and two blocks.

"I don't know how he does it," Oney said. "He never gets too high or too low. The guys just believe in him and get him opportunities."

Krystian Lewis scored 17 points, adding five assists, four rebounds and two steals. Chappelle was held to just one point in the first half but scored 14 in the second half to finish with 15. He also had seven rebounds, three blocks and two steals.

Mason Lewis tallied 11 points and five rebounds.

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