ELLISVILLE – Top-ranked Jones College led 28-11 after the opening quarter and never looked back in defeating Mississippi Delta 86-55 in the second round of the Region 23 Tournament here Wednesday night at A.B. Howard Gymnasium.
Jones, 17-0, will advance to the quarterfinals and host Pearl River (5-3) at 6 p.m. Monday. The Wildcats defeated Delgado (Louisiana) 64-42 on Wednesday.
The women's Region 23 semifinals will be played on April 7 and the championship game will be on April 9 at Mississippi College in Clinton.
The Bobcats have won 20 straight games and are seeking their fifth consecutive region championship.
The Bobcats got 21 points each from
Daisha Bradford (Mobile, Alabama) and
JaKayla Johnson (Clinton).
Endia Holliday (South Jones) had a double-double with 12 points and a game-high 14 rebounds. It was Holliday's second double-double of the season.
Kyjai Miles (Dallas, Texas) added nine rebounds as the Bobcats outrebounded the Trojans by a 56-34 margin.
Lekera Hughes (Oak Grove) dished out eight assists and Bradford had five steals. All 10 Bobcats who dressed for Jones scored on the night.
The Bobcats scored the game's first seven points and took a 20-5 lead midway through the opening quarter on a Johnson free throw. Jones led 42-26 at halftime.
A layup by
Kimaya Dixon (Lafeyette) ended a 13-0 run and gave the Bobcats a 62-34 lead with 2:54 to play in the third quarter. Jones led 68-38 entering the final period.
JC's longest lead of the game came with 1:38 remaining when
Nya Hatcher (Pearl) made a 3-pointer.
The Bobcats outscored MDCC 28-2 on fast break points and had a 54-28 margin on points in the paint. Jones committed 25 turnovers, but forced 27 MDCC turnovers.
Jones made 36-of-77 shots for 47 percent and was 6-of-19 from 3-point range for 32 percent. The Bobcats were 8-of-16 from the foul line.
MDCC was 21-of-61 from the field for 34 percent and was 3-of-18 from the 3-point line for 17 percent. The Trojans were 10-of-18 from the free throw line.
Antanisha Wade had 14 points and An'Teresa Dickson had 12 points and nine rebounds to lead the Trojans. Mississippi Delta ends the year at 5-11.
