JACKSON — It wasn’t Newton’s best offensive performance. 

With the way the Lady Tigers were playing defense, it didn’t have to be.

In the MHSAA Class 2A state title game Friday afternoon, the Newton girls basketball team faced a West Lincoln squad that was averaging 60 points per postseason game and had scored at least 50 points in all four playoff contests leading up to Friday. The Lady Tigers held the Lady Bears to their lowest scoring output since a 41-34 loss to Pelahatchie in late January as Newton edged West Lincoln 39-33 to capture the 2A crown. 

The championship was Newton’s first in girls basketball since 2010 and was head coach Perry Fletcher’s first state championship win.

“It’s amazing,” Fletcher said. “It’s so surreal. All the glory goes to God. I’ve been saying all year that it’s an honor to play for God’s glory, and being able to cap off this season with a state championship, we give it all back to Him.”

Nia McCalphia capped off her senior season with a 12-point, three-assist, four-steal performance, earning her player of the game honors. While she admitted the team could have done more offensively, having a state championship to its name was enough for her.

“We came out and did what we were supposed to do,” McCalphia said. “We didn’t play as well as we were expecting to play, but we still got the W, so that’s all that matters.”

Newton jumped out to a 10-4 lead after the first quarter and built it up a 21-11 halftime advantage. Of West Lincoln’s 11 first-half points, eight of them came courtesy of Lady Bears senior Katelyn Dickerson, who had a game-high 17 points. Foul trouble forced Dickerson to the bench late in the second quarter, and Newton ended the frame on a 9-3 run in her absence.

In the third quarter, Dickerson added eight more points to her total, as the Lady Bears were able to cut into the Newton lead and trail only 32-25 going into the final period. Newton, though, opened the fourth quarter with back-to-back field goals to jump ahead 36-25, and West Lincoln didn’t score until 3:11 left in the game on a field goal by Skylar Hall. 

The game got a little too close for comfort for Newton in the end, as a 3-pointer by Hall helped West Lincoln outscore the Lady Tigers 6-3 in the final 3:01 of play. Newton was plagued by poor free-throw shooting all game and finished just 2 of 14 from the line, which allowed West Lincoln to make a small run in the end. But Dickerson, who was near automatic in the first three quarters, almost went scoreless in the final eight minutes and finished with just one free throw in the fourth quarter.

“We shot horribly from the free-throw line, but that’s a credit to nerves,” Fletcher said. “I thought the game got a little big for us at moments, and the kids weren’t focused and rushing their shot, but we were fortunate enough that our defense was strong enough that the free throws didn’t come back to bite us.”

Ja’Leah Hickmon finished with 10 points, five rebounds and four steals for the Lady Tigers, and Myja McNichols tallied eight points and four rebounds for the Lady Tigers. The Newton defense held West Lincoln to 12 of 38 (32 percent) from the field.

“We stayed in the 2-2-1 half-court (defense), and they really couldn’t do anything (against) it,” McCalphia explained.

TURNING POINTS

Fletcher pointed to two instances that helped propel his girls to becoming championship-caliber. One was a 57-53 win against Forest back on Dec. 6, and the other was the end of the 2017-18 season, when Newton was eliminated by Coahoma County in the second round of the playoffs.

“I thought last year, when we lost to Coahoma County on our home floor, to see how hurt our girls were, we saw that if we put the work in, we would have an opportunity to win a state championship,” Fletcher said.

That set up an offseason workout plan that saw the team’s dedication level increase, to the point where they were even coming to practice while sick.

“None of these girls missed a day of practice,” Fletcher recalled. “When I saw that type of effort every day, I knew this team would do something special.”

Against Forest, Newton had to dig itself out of a deep hole to win, and that resiliency remained with the Lady Tigers for the rest of the season.

“We were down 23 points at the half, and those girls fought back and won,” Fletcher said. “That was a turning point for us.”

SENIOR SENDOFF 

Seniors McCalphia, McNichols, McKinley Ware, Alazaya Jones and Keyshawna Nelson all finish their high school careers as state champions, and McCalphia said there wasn’t a better way to go out.

“It means everything,” McCalphia said. “I give all praises to God. Without Him, we wouldn’t have done it.”

McNichols said winning a state championship was something in which she wanted to share with her fellow seniors.

“It means a lot,” McNichols said. “I grew up playing with these other seniors, and we just did it.”

A lot of credit goes to Fletcher’s coaching, McNichols added.

“It feels good to play for him,” she said. “When he came in, it made a big difference. He breaks stuff down and gets to the nitty gritty, and we follow it.”

FINAL RECORD 

Newton finished the season 29-2, with its only two losses coming to Class 3A Choctaw Central and Class 1A Lake County.