Basketball Roundup: East Prairie boys, Portageville girls win

Portageville's Ja'Niya Smith (23) sprints past a defender during a 61-25 win over Woodland in a MSHSAA Class 3 Sectional at the Sikeston Fieldhouse on Monday, Feb. 28. (Dennis Marshall/Standard-Democrat)

East Prairie defeated Hayti 66-65 in the opening round of the Gideon Bulldogs Classic on Tuesday, Nov. 28.

The fourth-seeded Eagles (1-0) held on to secure the victory despite the Indians’ (0-1) late-game comeback attempt.

“We’re happy to come out with the victory,” said East Prairie coach Gary Scott. “We have to be better down the stretch in taking care of the ball and making free throws. I’m proud of our guys for hanging on. Hayti is a scrappy team. They were relentless. Credit to them for getting back in it.”

East Prairie will face top-seeded Caruthersville (1-0) in a semifinal at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 30.

PORTAGEVILLE BEATS SOUTH PEMISCOT IN AL JACKSON CLASSIC

The Portageville girls’ basketball team opened its season with a 59-25 win over South Pemiscot on Tuesday, Nov. 29.

“It was an overall good game for us,” said Portageville coach Kellye Fowler. “We executed our game plan well and gave great effort. We started a little slow. It just took us a few minutes to knock the dust off and get back in the groove of things. Once we did a lot of good things happened. It’s nice to have that first win under our belt and have a better idea of what we need to improve on moving forward.”

Portageville will face Hayti (2-1) in a semifinal on Thursday, Nov. 30.

EAST PRAIRIE 66, HAYTI 65

Hayti (65) — Isaiah Love 18, Prince Black 15, Jeremy Alexander 9, Dwayne Grant 9, Arnez James 6, Jahiem Dunn 6, Rodquan Jones 2. FG: 27. FT: 7-16. F: 20. (3-pointers: Alexander 3, Grant 2, Love 1. Fouled out: James, Love).

East Prairie (66) — Connor Marcum 20, Noah Johnson 16, Evan Kennedy 14, Kamron Farmer 8, Ty Wallace 6, Tavion Ware 2. FG: 29. FT: 7-19. F: 15. (3-pointers: Marcum 1. Fouled out: none).

PORTAGEVILLE 59, SOUTH PEMISCOT 25

South Pemiscot (25) — Ta’Kylah 11, Mataiya Phillips 10, Ayleighonna 2, Maleah Duckworth 22. FG: 12. FT: 1-2. F: 11. (3-pointers: none. Fouled out: none).

Portageville (59) — Jayla Weddington 20, Ja’Niyah Smith 13, Laney Stone 12, Taryn Irby 7, Aubrey Greenwell 3, Glo Farmer 2, Lily Beth Priggel 2. FG: 25. FT: 6-12. F: 9. (3-pointers: Stone 2, Irby 1. Fouled out: none).