Advancing to final eight

A defensive change to start the second half ignited the H.W. Byers Lions Saturday night in round two of the Class 1A state playoffs.

Coach James Sales switched from a zone to man-to-man, and the Lions stretched a one-point lead to a 49-33 win over Wheeler in front of a loud home crowd.

“I guess I was too worried about keeping everybody out of foul trouble in the first half, and I stuck with the zone,” he said. “In the second half, we picked up the pressure and in turn picked up the temp. That played a big part in the win.”

The Lions missed a couple of early shots under the goal that could have staked them to an early lead.

However, the contest was tied at 8 at the end of the first quarter.

“Our guys just had to settle down,” Sales said.

The teams swapped the lead several times in the second quarter. Michael James’s basket on a break put Byers up 23-18 at the 1:07 mark. It was the largest lead for either squad in the first half.

The Eagles scored four straight, and Byers was up 2322 at intermission.

Less than two minutes into the third, Devin Moore stole the basketball and went the distance for a bucket. Two minutes later James hit a three. The lead was 30-22, and Wheeler called a timeout.

The same two Lions came up with the same plays to end the third. The score was 41-28.

Byers kept the momentum in the third and built on it when James dunked at the 5:56 mark.

The Lions spread the floor in the last three minutes of the game and cashed in some open lay-ups, including one by Jabari Wright which sealed the deal. They won by 16 points.

Byers enjoyed balanced scoring — Wright with 15, James with 12, and Cedric Watson and Moore with 10 each.

“I thought the second half that Jaylen Glover and Vincent Talley gave us some really good defense,” Sales said. “Michael (James) hit some clutch shots, and Devin (Moore) was working hard in the paint. Everybody played a key part.”

Earlier last week, the Lions had a tough battle in round one versus Okolona and pulled away in the final quarter for a 62-52 home win.

Byers was up 17-9 at the end of the first quarter, 31-23 at half and 42-37 after three.

Moore carried the load in the first half, scoring 15 of his game-high 25 points in those 16 minutes. Watson was six of six from the free-throw stripe in the fourth. He finished with 13 points.

The Lions outscored the Chieftains 20-15 in the final quarter to win by 10.

Byers (19-4) goes to Coffeeville this Saturday night with a berth in the Class 1A final four and trip to Jackson on the line. With a win, it would be the Lions first trip to the Big House (Mississippi Coliseum) since 2005, when they were led by a legendary coach, the late Gerone Kirkland.

“We’ve been in this situation the last two years and came up short,” Coach Sales said. “Our guys are prepared for this opportunity. We have to go to Coffeeville and play good basketball. We are looking forward to the challenge.”