Lady Eagles soar past Lady Cougars

FLORENCE – Lawrence County and Florence split a Region 6-4A basketball double-header Tuesday night at Florence High School. In girls’ play, Lawrence County led at the half, only to get outscored 38-8 in the second half as Florence won 55-28.

In the boys’ game, Pat Bridges’ Cougars got 29 points and 14 rebounds from Keyshawn Feazell, offsetting a 43-point outburst by Florence’s Jaylan Forbes. Lawrence County won 79-61.

Florence entered the girls’ game with a 12-0 record, ranked No. 1 among Mississippi’s 4A schools. In the first half, however, Vicki Rutland’s Lady Cougars looked capable of taking down the highly-rated Lady Eagles. Lawrence County played a textbook first half, and led 20-17 at the half.

Then, the wheels came off. Florence outscored Lawrence County 19-0 in the third quarter, and 38-8 in the second half. Nothing went right for the Lady Cougars after the intermission. Nothing. Danyelle Lewis and MiKayla Patton led Florence’s onslaught. Lewis had 21 points – 15 of them in the second half – and Patton added 15.

Lawrence County fell to 11-6 with the loss, and 0-1 in region play. Camryn Davis led the Lady Cougars with 10 points.

In boys’ action, Lawrence County took control in the second quarter and was never seriously threatened after that. Feazell, the Cougars’ 6-foot-8 center, had a huge night. The senior guard combination of Phillip Moore and Gabriel Lewis also had a big game. Moore had 18 points, five assists and three steals. Lewis tallied 12 points.

Lawrence County improved to 9-6 overall, and 1-0 in the region. Florence fell to 3-11 overall, and 0-2 in region play. Both Florence teams are coached by former USM star Darrin Chancellor.

Jaylan Forbes had a monster night for the Eagles. Forbes entered averaging 22.8 points per game, and almost doubled that figure.

Fouls were a frequent occurrence in the boys’ game. There were a total of 56 fouls and 77 free throws.

Lawrence County returns home on Friday, hosting McComb. The McComb boys are the two-time defending state 4A champions.