With the playoffs around the corner, the Columbia Wildcats are streaking at just the right time after a few difficult losses.
The Wildcats (7-8, 4-4) beat Seminary 83-33 Feb. 2 at home in the Bulldogs’ first game since being quarantined.
“We played extremely well changing defenses, running, got a lot of easy breaks and just wore them out,” head coach Jordan Dupuy said. “They were in quarantine for a while, so they only had one day to get ready for us. We kind of took advantage of it, so it was a good all-around game. We played hard and had 11 different people score.”
In a rematch Feb. 4 at Seminary, the Wildcats ran away with it in the second quarter en route to a 57-19 victory. The game was tied 9-9 at the end of the first quarter, but the Wildcats outscored Seminary 30-4 in the second period then ran the clock during the second half.
After previously beating West Marion 70-30 on their home court, the Wildcats got all they could handle from the Trojans on the road Friday. West Marion had a 61-54 lead with 1:07 remaining, but Columbia went on a 7-0 run to close regulation out and force overtime by switching defenses, trapping the Trojans and finishing at the rim. Then the Wildcats turned back up the pressure and outscored the Trojans 9-2 in overtime to pull away with a 70-63 win.
Dupuy said that being able to turn up the pressure in the fourth quarter to eke out a win shows the Wildcats have some potential going into the Class 3A playoffs that begin next week.
“It’s big, especially this time of year, to be able to not play your best, take their best shot on their home floor and find a way to win. Going into the postseason, you have to know you have the ability to do that,” he said. “You have to give West Marion credit. They played extremely confident. They played us man-to-man the whole game — in the first game they played nothing but zone — so them changing that up, guarding us really tough and never allowing us to gain any kind of offensive rhythm, you have to give them credit.”
Dupuy added that Darius Stewart had a rough game offensively, but Marlic Smith was the key reason Columbia stayed in it and was able to get the win.
“Marlic came off the bench and gave us a huge lift. That was big, and he’s getting back in the starting lineup tonight,” he said Tuesday prior to a game against Tylertown. “He made a key follow-up in overtime, but he started cramping up when he came down and was out the last minute of overtime. But he was the whole key to the entire game on both ends of the floor. He made things happen, finished around the rim and had 22 points and 10 rebounds.”
The Wildcats played at Tylertown Tuesday night in the Region 8-3A semifinals. Because of the coronavirus pandemic, the district has opted not to house the district tournament at a central location. Instead the higher-seeded team — in this case, Tylertown — hosts the game.
Columbia will play either Jeff Davis County or West Marion Friday in the championship or consolation game, depending on Tuesday’s results.
