North men cruise in MACJC All-Star game

Published 11:48 pm Saturday, March 28, 2009

CHOCTAW — When Itawamba’s Jason Marks made the first of two free throws to give the North a 100-72 lead over the South in the annual MACJC Men’s All-Star Basketball Game Friday night, there wasn’t the usual eruption that occurs when a team clocks its opponent.

Perhaps it was because there were still just over 14 minutes remaining in the contest at Choctaw Central High School.

Led by Coahoma’s Tensely Coleman’s 26 points, the North went on to claim a 136-117 victory. Only a running clock over most of the final eight minutes kept the score from being even higher.

Coleman, who averaged 13.2 points for the Tigers during the regular season, earned game Most Valuable Player honors.

“We had some talent on our side,” said North coach Ira Peterson of Coahoma. “We knew that we had some guys that could shoot the ball pretty good.

“I was saying the whole time that I wish I had a team like that. It makes it easy for me because I can just sit down and watch.”

The North drained a dozen shots from 3-point range in carrying a commanding 77-51 lead into halftime. Coleman, Kevin Harris of Northwest, and Theron Jenkins of Itawamba each had 11 points for the North by halftime while Northeast’s William Burdette had 10 and Mississippi Delta’s Terrance Washington had nine. Jenkins and Washington both had three treys in the opening 20 minutes.

Eight players finished in double figures for the North, which made 18 3-pointers in the win. Along with Coleman’s game-high 26 points, Harris scored 17, Gary Dixon of Itawamba had 16, Washington, Burdette, and East Mississippi’s Darian Donald each had 12; Jenkins had 11, and JeJuan Jacks of Coahoma had 10. Woodie Howard of East Mississippi finished with eight.

The South, which canned 16 3-point shots, was led by Trent Hutchin’s 23 points. Hutchin, a 6-foot guard from Copiah-Lincoln, knocked down seven 3-pointers.

Justin Ray of Region 23 champion Gulf Coast finished with 13 points and made four treys. Co-Lin’s Robin Wallace, East Central’s Josh Luckett, and Brian Singleton of Jones each finished with 12 points, and Courtney Nelson of Hinds and Cordell Pope of Gulf Coast both scored 10. Otis Smith of Southwest and Donte Smith of Pearl River both scored eight points.