STARKVILLE — The score was 16-14 at half, a clash between two teams that couldn’t quite find their offensive rhythms.
Starkville and Clinton were locked in a tight battle in Friday night’s MHSAA Class 6A second-round playoff game with neither team finding the edge, that was, until the third quarter.
In the third, the Yellow Jackets flipped the game completely on its head, turning what was a two-point halftime lead into an 18-point lead headed into the fourth.
From there, Starkville coasted, using its trademark stifling defense to throw the Arrows offense out of sync as the Jackets outscored Clinton, 35-16, in the second half for a dominant 51-32 win.
“I think we played well defensively,” Starkville head coach Qu’Varius “Woodie” Howard said. “We game out and guard well. It was the offense that was our problem. We started slow, they were in a zone, and we weren’t expecting it, but once we got settled down, we were able to make a few shots.
“We got the open shots that we wanted.”
In that third quarter, Starkville (24-4) outscored Clinton 18-2, going on a 11-0 run to begin the quarter and taking control like that.
At the forefront of that was star Makhi Myles, who drained two 3-pointers in the quarter, with both him and Nate Pruitt scoring five or more points for the Jackets in the third.
Myles led the team in scoring, finishing with 21 points and a perfect 7 of 7 from the foul line, as both he and teammate Connor Rogers finished in double figures in scoring.
“They were in a 3-2 zone, so Coach made it so where if we got the ball in a high post, then our high post man would either hit the corner or hit the post,” Rogers said. “We did that, and we hit the corner with Myles, and he hit two big 3s for us in that second half, which really got us going.
“They had to come out of the zone, and then we fed the post.”
Either feeding the big man down on the post or finding open looks from beyond the arc, the Jackets were taking open looks in the second half, and unlike the first half, shots were falling and falling consistently.
Starkville has put some big numbers on teams offensively over the course of the season, but just as the Jackets have been able to score in bunches, they’ve also been able to do an even better job at limiting points on the other side of the floor.
The win sends Starkville to the quarterfinals at Mississippi Valley State next week and a date with Horn Lake. The Jackets handed the Eagles their first loss during the regular season.
Knowing how competitive that game was, and with this being the state quarterfinals, it’s going to be a dogfight and a showcase of two of the best teams in Class 6A.
“I know they’re going to come out and they’re going to play hard from the jump,” Howard said. “They’re well-coached, so I know they’re going to come out ready to play. We have to come out ready to play offensively and defensively.”
Starkville and Horn Lake face off at MVSU at 7 p.m. Friday.
Other scores
Prep boys basketball
Cleveland Central 66, Columbus 32, MHSAA Class 5A second round
Biggersville 67, West Lowndes 41, MHSAA Class 1A second round
Prep baseball
Caledonia 13, Choctaw County 12, eight innings
ACKERMAN — Caledonia picked up a wild 13-12 win in eight innings Saturday at Choctaw County.
The Cavaliers and Chargers were tied 5-5 after four innings before things got crazy. Caledonia jumped out to a 9-5 lead, but Choctaw County scored the next five runs.
Caledonia scored three in the top of the seventh to reclaim the lead, but the Chargers tied the game with two in the bottom of the frame.
Caledonia (1-1) pushed across two runs in the eighth for the win.
The Cavs’ next game is at 6 p.m. Tuesday against Tupelo Christian Prep.
New Hope 11, Choctaw County 3, Friday
Hartfield Academy 14, Heritage Academy 2
Kirk Academy 12, Heritage Academy 5
Starkville 4, Houston 3 (Record: 1-0)
Saltillo 2, Starkville Academy 1
Tupelo 4, Starkville Academy 3
Prep softball
Hatley 7, Caledonia 6 at NEMCC Classic
Caledonia 12, Cherokee (Ala.) 3 at NEMCC Classic
Prep tennis
New Hope 5, Bruce 2
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