Bank of Holly Springs

Behind The Scoreboard

Congrats to our teams

The legacy of high school basketball in Marshall County seems to enrich itself each and every season, and this year is no different.

This past weekend, the Marshall Academy Lady Patriots claimed the state championship, and they’re playing in the Overall Tournament this week at Clinton.

We have two schools from Marshall County that will be traveling this week to Jackson for the State Tournament – Holly Springs High School (boys) and Byhalia High School (girls). These teams will be vying for the ultimate prize – the gold balls awarded at the Big House which signify a team has made it to the top.

And let’s not forget our neighbor – Benton County. Ashland High School (girls and boys) teams, which are within The South Reporter’s readership, are traveling south, too, this week.

A huge show of support means a lot to the players and coaches, too. They deserve our utmost respect and admiration. We at The South Reporter encourage you to continue to support our area teams. They represent us and our community. Most of all, they deserve it.

And once again, with much pride and appreciation, I thank each and every coach and team for making my job enjoyable this 2016-17 season.

Now over to collegiate basketball.

With Selection Sunday only two weeks away, there’s bound to be plenty of upsets, unforgettable performances, and some wild finishes too.

And that’s what exactly happened Saturday in the NCAA men’s basketball. The fans got a glimpse of  the madness that’s coming in March.

The most shocking upset in the sports news was Gonzaga. The BYU Cougars handed the Bulldogs their first loss of the season. There were other Top 25 teams too, such as Duke, Baylor and Purdue who lost to unranked teams Saturday.

And, in a comeback win over the Florida Gators, Kentucky’s freshman star, Malik Monk, scored 33 points for the Wildcats.

Let’s rewind to take a closer look at which team had the best win on Saturday.

Top-ranked Gonzaga’s quest for an unbeaten season went up in flames when the BYU Cougars pulled off a stunning 79-71 upset in the final game of the regular season. This was the Cougars’ first victory ever over a number one team, after four losses, and spoiled the Bulldogs’ perfect record in their last regular season game.

Gonzaga was hoping to become the first team since Kentucky in 2014-15 to finish the regular season without a blemish. But that didn’t happen for the Bulldogs, 29-1 instead of 30-0.

Malik Monk scored 30 of his 33 points in the second half, Bam Adebayo added 18 with 15 rebounds to help Kentucky rally past Florida 76-66 for a victory to take over the Southeastern Conference lead. While another week remains in the SEC play for both teams, the Wildcats (24-5, 14-2) took an important step toward clinching the regular season title by twice rallying from eight points down to win the matchup. The Wildcats can thank Monk for making it happen as he scored 14 points during an 18-10 run that tied the game at 55 with 9:54 remaining.

The other interesting results follow: fifth-ranked UCLA defeated fourth-ranked Arizona 77-72; Miami held 10th-ranked Duke to a staggering 32 points below its season average to beat the Blue Devils 55-50 in the Hurricanes’ home regular season finale; the Michigan Wolverines clinched an 82-70 victory over 14th-ranked Purdue Boilermakers; Iowa State routed ninth-ranked Baylor 72-69 for its fifth straight win.

Holly Springs South Reporter

P.O. Box 278
Holly Springs, MS 38635
PH: (662) 252-4261
FAX: (662) 252-3388
www.southreporter.com