BOYS BASKETBALL

2nd half push: Tomcats eliminate defending state champions

Michael Odom
michodom@jacksonsun.com

BROWNSVILLE – When the defending Class AA state champions come to town, a solid all-around game is necessary to have a chance to be victorious.

South Side asserted itself with a strong first half, but Haywood took control in the final 16 minutes to beat the Hawks 65-47 at Haywood on Tuesday.

"There is not a better feeling than winning this game in front of our home crowd," Haywood coach Kendall Dancy said. "We learned a lot from last year, and the guys came in and worked hard in the summer. They came in hungry, and they stayed hungry."

Haywood (32-2) advances to play Carter on March 12 at 2:45 p.m. in the Class AA quarterfinals.

Jordon Varnado, a 2014 Mr. Basketball finalist, finished with a team-high 23 points while Kyler Douglas added 13 points and Jalen Benton scored 10.

"It feels good to reach state," Varnado said. "I have been waiting a long time for this."

South Side took a 35-29 lead into the locker room, sparked by a 20-point first half performance by Terrikous Smith. Smith had 16 points in the first six minutes.

But Haywood kept its composure. As the Hawks continued to score, the Tomcats fought to stay in the game with hopes of the scoring rally to end.

That scoring rally did end in the third quarter, and the changes could be attributed to halftime adjustments made by the Tomcats' coaching staff.

"We wanted an up tempo game, and the 3s were falling for them," Dancy said. "We went to our man-to-man defense because that is our bread and butter. We locked down on defense."

The Haywood defense held South Side to four points in the first eight minutes to the second half and continued it by allowing a total of seven points in the first 14 minutes of the second half.

The Tomcats made sure to shut down Smith after his first-half outburst, as he finished with 23 points, and they contained 2015 Mr. Basketball finalist Chris McNeal.

"The second half was all about defense," Varnado said. "We wasn't playing good defense and leaving them open for wide-open baskets. We had to get after McNeal and Smith, and stop them from scoring."

Haywood also got things going on the offensive end in the third quarter. The Tomcats ended the quarter on an 11-0 run with Varnado, Alandis Delk, James Davidson and Benton all scoring during that stretch.

"The halftime adjustments came from the coaches," Dancy said. "The coaches can make all the adjustments they want, but the guys have to buy in. The guys bought into the adjustments."

As South Side continued to struggle in the fourth quarter, the Tomcats continued to assert themselves scoring.

Varnado and Douglas took over – as senior leaders should do. Varnado scored nine points in the first six minutes of the final quarter as the Tomcats extended the lead to 19 points (61-42).

Haywood is making its first trip to the state tournament since 2006, when the Tomcats went four consecutive years. Haywood hasn't been to the state semifinals since 2003.

Michael Odom, 425-9754