It’s getting to the point where a seemingly very different Lady Eagles team takes the floor with each passing game after alternating great wins and horrible losses in four straight games.
East Marion (5-11, 1-1) had a great showing Dec. 27 in the McComb Holiday Tournament, besting Wilkinson County 62-51 behind the hot shooting of sophomore Destiny Brown. The point guard shot 53% from the floor while scoring 24 and also stuffed the state sheet with eight steals, five rebounds and five assists. Lia Smith (16 points, 58% shooting) and Dyani Weary (10 points, 100%) were on fire as well.
However, when they returned to the floor in Hattiesburg Tuesday at North Forrest, the Lady Eagles couldn’t buy a basket as they shot 10-of-46 from the field, just 22%, and didn’t have a single player reach double digits in points in a 38-27 loss.
Head coach Calvin Brown said it was another game where their emotions held the Lady Eagles back on offense despite being great defensively.
“It really worked for us on the defensive end, but on the offensive end we couldn’t even see the basket. We were just so emotional and couldn’t settle down or will our way to putting it through the hoop,” he said. “We’re just still trying to grow into that. We have to get where we can play hard, play intense and get in the fight and at the same time get in the game.”
Brown said the Lady Eagles need to grow and improve in all areas in terms of accountability.
“Everybody every night has to bring what’s expected of them to the table. That’s been the story all year long,” he explained. “We know who we are now. We know who to expect to get points from, who is going to be guarding the other team’s best player, who is going to get the most shots and where they’re going to be getting them from; now it’s just about getting the job done night in and night out.”
Brown added teams like North Forrest, Tylertown and Jeff Davis that play fast, physical and aggressive defensively are the teams the Lady Eagles can’t get baskets against. When they play against teams with a controlled tempo like Wilkinson County, they are able to get into their half-court sets and execute. He said it’s not really as much about the X’s and O’s but more about the pace and intensity.
“We just don’t settle down enough to put the ball in the hoop.”
East Marion played host to St. Patrick (7-7, 2-0) Friday night, but results were unavailable at press time.
The Lady Eagles will remain at home Tuesday when they play host to Collins (3-13, 1-1).
Pictured Above: East Marion's Destiny Brown fights through traffic for a layup. | Photo by Joshua Campbell
