HOOPS: Gibson girls knock off Peabody

DYER - Gibson County girls basketball broke open a close game just before halftime before cruising in the second half to a 58-42 victory over Peabody on Tuesday night.

“There were a little nerves early on,” said Gibson County head coach Mitch Wilkins. “They were picked to win the district and we want to defend our title, so both teams wanted to play well, but there was sloppy play on both ends of the floor.”

Peabody held the lead early in the game, though neither team was able to generate much offense. Fouls were an issue for both teams as there were 12 fouls combined in the first quarter, with Gibson County holding the 11-9 lead after the first eight minutes.

The Lady Pioneers extended their lead early in the second quarter to 16-11 before Peabody went on a 7-0 run to take the 19-16 lead with 3:05 left in the quarter. Peabody would not score again in the half, allowing Gibson County to finish the half on a 6-0 run to take the 24-19 lead into the locker room.

“[The run before halftime] helped us with confidence,” Wilkins said. “The younger players stepped up by driving the ball and picking up some fouls.”

Peabody struggled to hit shots in the third quarter, allowing Gibson County to take control of the game, going on a 15-2 run to open the quarter to make it 39-21, which was Gibson County’s largest lead of the night.

“The third quarter was huge,” Wilkins said. “We made some adjustments at halftime, just realizing what they were doing to us and we made some stops on defense, which always helps the offense.”

Peabody was not able to cut the lead closer than 14 points in the third quarter, with Gibson County finishing the quarter on a 4-0 run to make it 43-25 at the end of the quarter.

Trailing by double digits, Peabody came out firing in the fourth quarter, but they were unable to get closer than 13 points as the Lady Pioneers held on for the 58-42 win.

Four players for Gibson County had double figures, with Alaina Hunt leading the scoring for the Lady Pioneers with 12 points. Allie Smithson finished with 11 points, with Hannah Ball and Justyce White finishing with 10 points apiece.

MaKayla Jones led all scorers with 14 points for Peabody.