By Daniel Rigdon / Sports Writer
The Meridian Star
JACKSON — The drought continues for the Meridian High basketball program.
Eyeing their first state championship since 1978, the Wildcats saw their season come to an end on a sour note Saturday night as it was defeated by Starkville in tightly-contested 6A state championship game 57-51 at the Mississippi Coliseum.
The Wildcats had many opportunities in the contest but could never really get over the hump against the highly- energized Yellow Jackets (29-2).
"I feel like Starkville played with a lot of energy tonight," said Meridian coach Randy Bolden. "They executed down the stretch."
Meridian, which trailed from the outset, would regain its composure in the second half. MHS (25-7) would tie the game at 37 when junior Dandy Dozen Rodney Hood hit a 3-pointer with 2:44 left in the third quarter.
However, a combination of poor free throw shooting and missed shots in the paint would eventually doom Meridian. The Wildcats made just 7 of 19 free throws.
"I think our free throws killed us tonight," added Bolden. "You can't beat a good team like Starkville if you miss your free throws. We missed a lot of chippies under there, easy baskets along the way. The ball just didn't bounce our way tonight. You have those bad nights sometimes and we had ours tonight.
"It was just Starkville's night, they were the best team tonight and they deserved it."
The Yellow Jackets, who also downed the Wildcats 63-60 at Meridian on Nov. 10, looked like a champion for the start. Starkville, which trailed 20-8 after the first quarter in the first meeting, got rolling early in the rematch as it raced out to an 11-4 lead only three minutes into the first quarter. MHS point guard Nick Waters would hit a 3-pointer to cool the Starkville attack and the Wildcats trailed 14-9 after opening quarter.
Starkville again pressed the issue in the second quarter behind Southern Miss signee Rashad Perkins aerial displays. Perkins even gave the crowd a reverse two-handed jam off of an alley as the Jackets stretched their lead to the largest of the game at 24-15 just three minutes into the second period.
However, the Wildcats responded as Marcus Hurn and Hood would combine for an 11-6 run to enter halftime down 31-26. Meridian continued that stretch into the second half through Hood's game-tying bucket. But Starkville had the answer and grabbed its first state championship since 1961 behind Perkins' game-high 25 on his way to MVP honors. Edward Townsel added 11.
Meridian was led by Hood's 14 points, while Matthew and Marcus Hurn each dropped in 12 as the Wildcats now look ahead to next season. Expectations will be high as Meridian returns all five starters and a majority of its bench players.
"We have everyone coming back and we're looking foward to it," said Bolden. "We are gonna get in the gym and just get better. Hopefully we will be right back here next year."
