Choctaws survive scare from Tomcats

The Lady Choctaws took the court first looking to get back on the right track with a win over the Lady Tomcats. The two respected squads traded baskets for most of the first quarter, but a basket inside by Haywood's Kelsi Moore gave the Lady Tomcats a 13-12 advantage going into the second quarter of play.

"We are still having trouble with our press breaker," said Lady Choctaw head coach Angie Stafford. "We continue to work on it in practice and I do feel we are improving on it."

The Lady Tomcats got all but two of their first-quarter points off transition baskets after breaking the Lady Choctaws press.

In the second quarter the Lady Tomcats continued to shoot the ball well, especially under the basket. Haywood started the second quarter on a 7-0 run, with Dyer County receiving their first field goal of the frame at the five-minute mark of the quarter.

After another successful quarter shooting the basketball, the Lady Tomcats took a 32-20 lead going into the halftime break.

As bad as the Lady Choctaws shot the ball in the first half it looked as if Haywood would run off with the win, but a Kassie Cowart and Brittany Cranford-led third quarter gave Dyer County a 45-44 advantage going into the fourth quarter. The Lady Choctaws outscored the Lady Tomcats 25-12 in the quarter, giving Dyer County the momentum going into the final frame.

"It seems like someone steps up for us every night and hits a big shot, and I hope that continues over to Friday," said Stafford.

Cowart connected on her third 3-point basket opening the fourth quarter, followed by a Cranford lay-up that pushed the Lady Choctaw lead to six early on. Haywood would reply with a 6-0 run that knotted the game at 50-50.

Haywood led the Lady Choctaws 61-58 before Cowart scored a transition lay-up that put Dyer County within one point with 12 seconds remaining. After another Haywood free throw, the Lady Choctaws were down 62-61 with time running out. Cranford attacked the basket on the Choctaws' final possession of the game, sending her to the line with three seconds remaining on the clock.

Cranford missed the free-throw attempt, which sealed the hard-fought victory for Haywood.

In the nightcap, the No. 2 Choctaws (17-0) took the court against a fired-up Tomcat team that put the 40-point loss the last time these two teams met way behind them. The Tomcats put on a great show for their home crowd, starting with a 12-2 run to open the game up.

"Give Haywood a lot of credit, they came out and played a great game tonight," said Choctaw head coach Derek McCord.

Dyer County struggled from the field early in the first quarter, but a late offensive burst by the Choctaws cut the Haywood lead to 19-12 after one quarter of play. In the second quarter the Tomcats continued to stroke it from mid-range, playing right with the heavily favored Choctaws.

The two athletic squads continued to swap baskets for most of the second quarter, until the Choctaw deep threats started finding their mark. Rex Pierce and John Hudson have sparked many comebacks this season for Dyer County and the two sharpshooters did it again on Tuesday.

The Choctaws outscored the Tomcats 24-19 in the quarter, but still trailed Haywood 38-36 going into the locker rooms at halftime.

In the third quarter the two squads continued to battle it out on the court, with Haywood continuing to do just enough to preserve their lead. The Choctaws were able to cut the Tomcat lead to 49-48 before a 9-2 Haywood run to close the quarter gave them a 57-50 advantage going into the fourth quarter in front of their home crowd.

The Tomcats continued to play the Choctaws tough in the final frame, but their aggressiveness on the defensive side of the court landed the Choctaws in the double bonus with just two minutes gone off the fourth-quarter clock.

The Choctaws scratched and clawed their way back into the game and knotted the contest at 67-67 with under two minutes to play. Pierce knocked down a mid-ranged jumper to give the Choctaws a slight 70-69 advantage, but Haywood quickly got the ball downcourt and drew a foul that sent them to the line. The Tomcats connected on one free throw to tie the game at 71-71. Choctaw Fred Yarbrough was fouled trying to get the ball downcourt, which sent the outstanding freshman to the line with four seconds remaining.

"Fred has played great for us all season," said McCord. "Sometimes it's really hard to believe that he is just a freshman."

Yarbrough missed his first attempt, but knocked down the second shot which gave the Choctaws a 72-71 lead. After a failed attempt to win the game by Haywood, the Choctaws remain unbeaten on the season.

"I have had to deal with as much adversity as I did tonight in my three years here," said McCord. "Give our guys credit, they went through a lot tonight but they never lost their cool and continued to play hard all game."

Dyer County outscored Haywood 21-14 in the final frame, but it was four charges taken by Hudson that put the Choctaws in position to win the game down the stretch.

The Newbern squads will return to action when they travel down the road to take on their heated rivals Dyersburg on Friday.