JACKSON – The East Marion Lady Eagles (19-8) punched their ticket to the Final Four Friday night at Jackson State with a convincing 51-32 win over Biggersville, reaching the semifinals for the first time since 2003.
“I’m really at a loss for words because you would have to be in our inner circle to understand some of the fights we fought with this group,” head coach Calvin Brown said after the game. “They’re adorable but the gritty part, the roll your sleeves up and how intense and aggressive you have to play — they fought that for a long time, probably up until January. To grow to this point where they are fighting all the way to the Final Four makes me extremely proud.”
Now the Lady Eagles turn their attention towards the defending class 1A state champs, Pine Grove. The teams will square off Monday morning at Jackson State at 9.
The Lady Panthers (31-3) held off Durant in a 44-43 thriller right before East Marion took the floor Friday. Brown, who has been scouting Pine Grove since last season, knows the team from Northeast Mississippi will pose some challenges but believes the Lady Eagles are up for the tall task.
“They’re the odds-on favorite. We know we’re going to get a heavy dose of No. 30 (Haley Vick). She’s a dynamic inside-outside talent on the floor. But the other (players) are solid, which is what makes them a little different. There’s been players so far we could play off of, but you have to prepare for everybody with (Pine Grove) and give (Vick) the attention she deserves. That makes it more of a challenge, but we’re more than capable. It’s a very winnable game.”
The Lady Panthers have four players averaging at least 9.6 points per game and can make shots from anywhere on the court.
Friday against Biggersville, East Marion pounced early as eighth-grader Destiny Brown came off the bench to make four of the Lady Eagles six 3-pointers in the first half to give the Lady Eagles a comfortable margin throughout the game. Heading into the game, Brown said he wasn’t worried about shooting in an open arena for the first time since the Lady Eagles typically win inside, but their perimeter shooting is what made the difference under the bright lights.
“Even though we know perimeter shooting is not our strength we still encourage them to take open ones because long rebounds we can get to with our speed. The young one (Brown) is supposed to be able to shoot — she started form shooting at 5 years old — but I didn’t know she would be able to shoot under those lights like that,” Brown said. “We just take them when they’re there and the few that go in are typically icing on the cake. It was just the opportune time for them to go down (today) because what we were trying to do offensively with getting it to (Tytianna Porter) and getting out in transition wasn’t working. Those early perimeter shots were huge.”
The Lady Eagles built a nine-point lead in the first quarter and Biggersville never got any closer throughout the contest. Brown’s four triples gave her a team-high 12 points, while Porter had 11 points and RaQquiya Haynes made two threes and scored 10. Amber Willis contributed eight points and corralled 12 rebounds, and McKinley Norman blocked three shots and Dontajha Stepney dished six assists.
Caption: Amber Willis releases a shot for East Marion Friday against Biggersville at Jackson State. Photo by Joshua Campbell.
