Hawks go out in state semis

A promising first quarter didn’t hold up for Holly Springs Wednesday afternoon, March 2, in Jackson.

The Hawks saw an eight-point lead evaporate and went on to lose 57-47 to Southeast Lauderdale in the Class 3A State Tournament semi-finals at Mississippi Coliseum.

“We got off to a really good start, and then I thought our guys got sort of stagnant offensively,” coach Andre Jones said. “We were not ourselves — not good shot selection.”

He said the Tigers’ defense had a lot to do with his team’s struggles.

“They switched up their defenses nearly every possession, and it caught our guys off guard,” Jones said.

After going up 11-3 at the end of the first, Southeast Lauderdale answered by outscoring Holly High 21-7 over the next eight minutes and taking a 24-18 lead at halftime.

The Hawks fell behind by as many as 13 points in the third and trailed 38-26 at the conclusion of that quarter.

The Tigers were up by as many as 17 in the fourth before winning by 10.

Leading scorers for Holly Springs were Ded’Drick Faulkner with 15 and Marquavous Jones with 13.

Top rebounders were M. Jones and Jabez Jones with seven each and Faulkner with six. M. Jones also had three steals.

The Hawks shot 31.5 percent from the field (17 of 54). They were 12 of 21 from the free-throw line (57 percent).

The Tigers shot 36 percent from the field (18 of 50). They were 18 of 23 from the charity stripe (78 percent).

Each team committed 14 turnovers.

The Hawks were out-rebounded 42 to 34.

Coach Jones saw his team bounce back from a not-sogood start to the season and make it all the way to the final four.

“We were trending in an undesirable direction early in the season,” he said. “We had a lot of adversity.

“We redefined our season down the stretch. This group had a lot of heart, and that’s what turned things around. We started bonding and having team chemistry.

“Even though it was a bad start to the season for us, these kids embraced those moments, and it made us better down the stretch.

The Hawks finished with a 13-17 record, facing what Jones called a “really tough schedule” loaded with larger schools.

“Playing that competition helped us get better,” Jones said.

“I’m proud of these guys for making it as far as they did (the state semi-finals). It was a huge accomplishment on their part.”

He thanked Kylon Freeman, his assistant coach, for all his time and effort, “He put in a lot of work,” Jones said.

The Holly High coaches lose four seniors — M. Jones, Faulkner, Cordarrius Isom and Anferne Lesueur.

“We have a good nucleus returning,” Jones said. “We need to take full advantage of the off-season and work hard to get better as a team.”

Southeast Lauderdale went on to lose to Booneville in the state championship game Saturday at The Big House.