.jpg "Image") Freshman guard Coco Ware of Starkville tallied 22 points Tuesday in helping lead the 4-3 Lions to their third consecutive win with an 87-70 road victory over Bevill State-Jasper.
With five of their first seven contests having come on the road, coach Mark White’s 4-3 Lions went over the .500 mark for the first time on the young season with the 17-point win over the Bears out of the Alabama Community College Conference.
Coming off recent victories over East Central and Copiah-Lincoln, EMCC started slowly against Bevill State before applying defensive pressure to muster some needed energy on the road. After managing to grab a 44-38 halftime advantage, the Lions’ relentless defensive pressure and offensive rebounding ultimately wore down the home-standing Bears. Utilizing a spread offense late in the contest against a fatigued Bevill State-Jasper club, EMCC’s final 17-point outcome matched the team’s largest margin of the game.
“I’m pleased with sitting at 4-3 after playing five of our first seven games on the road,” White noted. “We really shared the basketball tonight and made some big shots when we needed them. Hopefully we’ll be able to maintain our momentum when unbeaten Jones County comes to our place next Tuesday. That promises to be an entertaining game for our fans.”
With the Lions playing without starter Rob Elam due to a bruised lower back, Ware paced a quartet of double-digit EMCC scorers with 22 points against Bevill State. A former standout at Starkville High School, Ware is averaging 24.5 points over his last four outings. Larry Foster of York, Ala., followed with a season-high 17 points, while Starkville’s Woodie Howard and Memphis’ Cataurius Taylor added 12 and 11 points, respectively, to the winning effort. Darian Donald of Columbus and John Harris of Starkville contributed nine points apiece.
The East Mississippi basketball teams return to Scooba to begin a three-game homestand next Tuesday (Dec. 2) by playing host to Jones County. Tip-off times at EMCC’s Keyes T. Currie Coliseum are set for 5:30 p.m. for the women’s game followed by a 7:30 p.m. men’s contest.
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Last Updated ( Tuesday, 25 November 2008 )
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.jpg "Image") Sophomore Sanitra Bush matched her career high with 15 points Tuesday to help lead the 6-2 Lady Lions to a 64-52 victory over Pearl River in the MGCCC Classic played in Perkinston.
Less than 24 hours after knocking off the host Lady Bulldogs of Mississippi Gulf Coast by a 62-55 tally, coach Sharon Thompson’s Lady Lions had little trouble in posting their second triumph over Pearl River this season. Two weeks ago in Scooba, the EMCC women recorded a convincing 71-43 home victory over the visiting PRCC Lady Wildcats.
In their final hoops action before the Thanksgiving holiday, the 6-2 Lady Lions established control early in Tuesday’s rematch on the way to holding a 33-23 halftime advantage. Shooting more than twice as many free throws than Pearl River for the game, the EMCC women connected on 25-of-33 (76%) from the charity stripe. The Lady Lions also benefitted from a 38-24 rebounding margin as well as taking advantage of 22 PRCC turnovers.
“We went into today’s game planning to substitute five-for-five to give some of our other players some needed game action,” Thompson said. “It’s nice to be heading into the Thanksgiving holiday having gained back some momentum with these two victories. We’ll enjoy these wins for now before getting back to work with three straight home games beginning next week.”
Coming off her 14-point outing in Monday’s seven-point win over Gulf Coast, sophomore Sanitra Bush of Starkville matched her career high with a team-best 15 points Tuesday against Pearl River. Along with hitting 7-of-8 free throws, the former Starkville High School standout was credited with five rebounds and five steals. Sophomore point guard Kottia White of Jackson hit for 10 points for a second straight game after bouncing back from an ankle sprain, while fellow sophomore Jasmine Abrams of Columbus notched a double-double with 10 points and a team-high 10 rebounds for the winners.
Remaining winless in seven decisions on the year, Pearl River was led by Sabrina Duncan’s 14 points on 7-of-11 field-goal accuracy. Shyeeda Wynne and Emma Craft added nine and eight points, respectively, for the Lady Wildcats.
The Lady Lions will tip off an upcoming three-game homestand next Tuesday (Dec. 2) when Jones County travels to Scooba for a men’s/women’s doubleheader. Game times at Keyes T. Currie Coliseum on the EMCC campus will be 5:30 p.m. for the women’s contest followed by a 7:30 p.m. men’s tip-off.
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Last Updated ( Tuesday, 25 November 2008 )
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.jpg "Image") Sophomore Angelique Burtts paced a balanced EMCC scoring attack with 15 points to help lead the 5-2 Lady Lions to a 62-55 road win over host Mississippi Gulf Coast in Monday’s opening round of the MGCCC Classic on the Perkinston campus.
The two-day classic concludes Tuesday with the EMCC women meeting Pearl River at noon, followed by a 2 p.m. women’s contest pitting host Gulf Coast and Pensacola Junior College. The Lady Lions easily defeated PRCC, 71-43, two weeks ago in Scooba.
In Monday’s tournament opener between EMCC and Gulf Coast, coach Sharon Thompson’s Lady Lions snapped a two-game losing skid by claiming their fourth road victory of the young season. Now 5-2 overall on the year, East Mississippi opened the 2008-09 campaign with road wins over Jones County, East Central and Hinds.
Rebounding from recent setbacks to East Central and Copiah-Lincoln, EMCC was involved in a tight contest against the home-standing Lady Bulldogs during Monday’s first-round tournament action in Perkinston. Returning to the Lady Lions’ lineup after missing last Thursday’s Co-Lin contest with a sprained ankle, sophomore point guard Kottia White of Jackson gave the visitors a 29-26 halftime lead by hitting a 3-pointer at the buzzer.
Despite trailing with three minutes remaining in the contest, the Lady Lions stepped up their defensive intensity and continued to take care of the basketball down the stretch. While committing but five second-half miscues, EMCC also benefitted from timely shooting from the charity stripe over the game’s final minutes to secure the seven-point road triumph.
“I’m pleased with our effort today because we competed for the entire 40 minutes,” Thompson noted. “It was nice having Kottia back on the floor, and it showed with us only having 15 turnovers in the game. We took better care of the ball and we made our free throws down the stretch when we really needed them. It was a total team effort today.”
Individually, sophomore transfer Angelique Burtts by way of Conyers, Ga., led a balanced East Mississippi scoring attack with 15 points. Sophomore Sanitra Bush of Starkville followed with a season-high 14 points, while White added 10 points for the winners.
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Last Updated ( Monday, 24 November 2008 )
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 Freshman guard Coco Ware of Starkville registered his third consecutive 20-point outing in the Lions’ 69-64 road win over Copiah-Lincoln Thursday. The 20th-ranked Lady Lions fell, 69-50, at Co-Lin for their second straight defeat after four consecutive wins to begin the year.
Fresh from Monday’s impressive 86-55 home win over East Central, coach Mark White’s Lions evened their season’s record at 3-3 by holding on for a 69-64 victory over Co-Lin. Trailing 18-9 midway through the opening half, EMCC outscored the Wolves, 25-6, the remainder of the half to hold a 34-24 halftime lead. The visitors increased their cushion to 16 points several times during the second stanza, but were victimized by numerous turnovers in their halfcourt offense. The difference in the game was EMCC’s commanding 46-16 rebounding margin, including a 15-5 advantage on the offensive boards
“Though I’m frustrated with our (29) turnovers, I’m proud of the way we gutted out this victory tonight on the road,” White admitted. “We could have easily folded down the stretch playing in this tough environment, but we toughed it out with our great presence on the boards and turned the game around with our press.”
Coming off recent outings of 29 and 24 points, Starkville's Coco Ware notched his third straight 20-point effort with 23 points on 8-of-12 field-goal shooting. Along with hitting four clutch free throws over the final minute after Co-Lin had cut the deficit to three points, Ware also had five rebounds and four steals. Rob Elam followed with 13 points on 6-of-9 shooting and added nine boards, while Starkville's Woodie Howard notched a double-double with 12 points and 16 rebounds. Columbus’ Darian Donald contributed nine points and eight rebounds to the winning effort.
For the second game in a row, coach Sharon Thompson’s 20th-ranked Lady Lions couldn’t recover from a sluggish start before falling by double figures. Playing without starting point guard Kottia White of Jackson, who sat out the Co-Lin contest after hurting her ankle during Wednesday’s practice, the EMCC women trailed 40-24 at the half to the undefeated Lady Wolves. For the game minus their veteran playmaker, East Mississippi shot just 34 percent (17-of-50 FGs) from the field, while Copiah-Lincoln connected on 28-of-66 field-goal attempts for 42 percent accuracy.
Having opened the new season with four consecutive victories, including three straight road wins, the Lady Lions came into Thursday’s Co-Lin contest ranked 20th nationally in the season’s first NJCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Poll.
“I don’t know if we were content in starting out the season 4-0, but for the second game in a row we did not come out mentally ready to play a basketball game,” Thompson said. “I’m sure a lot of our sluggishness tonight was caused by Kottia not being able to play because of her ankle injury.”
Not managing a double-figure scorer in the contest, the Lady Lions received nine points from both Middle Tennessee State transfer Angelique Burtts and Jasmine Abrams of Columbus. Abrams added six rebounds, while former Southeast Lauderdale standout Martika Hull had seven points and five boards.
The EMCC women will travel to Perkinston to compete in next week’s Gulf Coast Holiday Classic. The Lady Lions will take on host Mississippi Gulf Coast Monday afternoon before meeting Pearl River the following day. The Lions will venture to Jasper, Ala., to battle Bevill State on Tuesday.
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Last Updated ( Friday, 21 November 2008 )
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 Jasmine Abrams (left) recorded a double-double with 15 points and 12 rebounds Monday against East Central, while Woodie Howard tallied a season-high 17 points in EMCC’s 86-55 home win over the Warriors.
In Monday’s opener, coach Sharon Thompson’s Lady Lions couldn’t find an answer for sophomore guard Mystee Dale in the opening 20 minutes of action. The former Choctaw Central standout pumped in 19 first-half points on 7-of-10 shooting to stake the reigning Region 23 champions to a 29-17 halftime advantage. The visiting Lady Warriors, now 4-2 on the season, shot 48 percent from the field in the opening half, while limiting EMCC to just 29 percent first-half shooting.
ECCC’s Dale set the tone in the second stanza as well by hitting one of her four 3-pointers to begin the second-half scoring. The visitors extended their lead to as many as 19 points (42-23) midway through the closing period on the way to cruising to the 11-point road victory. The Lady Lions, now 4-1 on the year, had opened the current campaign with four consecutive wins, including a 62-60 road triumph over preseason 13th-ranked East Central on Nov. 6 in Decatur.
Dale, who led all scorers with 22 points in the year’s previous meeting, finished with a game-high 27 points Monday night in Scooba on 10-of-17 shooting, including 4-of-6 accuracy from beyond the three-point arc. Rashima Jenkins and Alisha McAfee followed with eight points apiece for the winners. Sophomores Jasmine Abrams of Columbus and Kottia White of Jackson led the Lady Lions with 15 and 10 points, respectively. Abrams posted a double-double for EMCC by adding a dozen rebounds.
In the nightcap, coach Mark White’s 2-3 Lions averaged their earlier 73-63 road setback to East Central by controlling the rematch from start to finish. Never trailing in the contest, EMCC went up by a 9-2 score four minutes into the contest on the way to maintaining a 36-19 halftime lead. The Lions basically put the game away during the opening four minutes of the second stanza. A three-point play by freshman Rob Elam capped a 12-0 EMCC run to open the second half and give the home team a comfortable 48-19 advantage by the 16:40 mark.
Shooting a sizzling 72 percent (18-of-25) from the field in the second half, the EMCC men increased their insurmountable cushion to as many as 34 points (60-26) by the 11:40 mark en route to the impressive 31-point final margin. For the contest, the Lions shot 64 percent from the field on 34-of-53 accuracy, while holding the visiting Warriors to just 37 percent (19-of-51) field-goal shooting on the night.
Coming off a season-high, 29-point performance last Thursday against Pearl River, freshman guard Coco Ware of Starkville paced a quartet of double-digit EMCC scorers with a game-high 24 points on 10-of-13 shooting. Fellow Starkville native Woodie Howard followed with 17 points on 8-of-11 field goals, while Darian Donald of Columbus and Starkville’s John Harris added 13 and 10 points, respectively, to the winning effort.
The East Mississippi basketball teams return to road action Thursday night (Nov. 13) by taking on Copiah-Lincoln. Tip-off times are set for 6 and 8 p.m. in Wesson.
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Last Updated ( Tuesday, 18 November 2008 )
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