By Daniel Rigdon / sports writer
Meridian High upped its record above the .500 mark as it held off a late rally from Tupelo Saturday night to drop the Golden Wave 71-66.
The host Wildcats (3-2) battled back-and-forth in the first quarter as each team traded basket for basket before Meridian ended the quarter with a three-point lead at 14-11.
Meridian would extend its lead throughout the second quarter as Decourtland Christian capped it off with a jumper at the buzzer to put Meridian up by 10 heading into halftime.
It was all Wildcats in the third quarter as they used solid defense to extend its lead to 14. Tupelo (2-2) also would help the Meridian cause by putting it into the bonus late in the third.
Meridian was 20-27 from the charity stripe in the contest.
Despite falling behind by as many as 16 points in the final period, Tupelo would fight back to come as close as five points down with 30 seconds left. However, the clock would run out before the Golden Wave could complete their rally and Meridian hung on.
"Tupelo has a good team," Meridian coach Randy Bolden said. "They are well-coached and will not quit. "We did a poor job in letting the game slip away but we were fortunate to come out with the win."
The Wildcats were led by Matthew Hurn with a game-high 20 points. Devin Cherry also dropped in 11.
Meridian is back in action Nov. 24 as it travels to Memphis to take on top-ranked Central High School.
Meridian girls 49
Tupelo 31
Meridian played with confidence Saturday night and it showed as they blew past visiting Tupelo.
The Wildcats (3-3) jumped on the Golden Wave early as it opened up the game with an 8-0 run. Meridian's defense showed up in a big way as it held Tupelo to only two first-quarter points and nine for the half. Meridian led 25-9 at halftime.
The second half went just as the the first as the Wildcats used a steady dose of tough defense to pad to their lead.
"We played a lot smarter tonight," Meridian coach Patricia Wilson said. "We were trying to force things at first but we settled down and played the game."
According to Wilson shutting down Tupelo's leading scorer, Amber Jackson, was key in the outcome of the game.
"She's been scoring about a third of their teams points." added Wilson.
Meridian was led by Aquashia Anderson with 13 points, six rebounds, and three steals. E. T. Warren added 11 points, while Reyada Stinner chipped in with nine.
The Wildcats resume play Dec. 4 as they travel to Clinton to take on the Arrows.
