McCOMB – The Lawrence County boys and girls were both losers in the final night of the Division 6-4A basketball tournament at McComb High School Friday. The girls lost to Florence, 46-33, in the consolation game. The LCHS boys took on two-time defending state champion McComb in the championship game, and McComb rolled to a 63-38 win.

The boys’ championship game was the third meeting between the Cougars and Tigers this winter. McComb won handily in the first meeting, at LCHS, but the Cougars came close to ending the Tigers’ undefeated season two weeks ago, losing by one, 61-60.

Lawrence County partisans hoped the third time would be the charm, but things didn’t work out that way for the Cougars. Lawrence County found points hard to come by against McComb’s 2-3 zone. The Cougars simply didn’t make enough shots, and when LCHS turned the ball over, McComb used its transition game to convert the turnover into points almost every time.

Zarkechious Martin led the Tigers with 18 points. Quadarius Green had 14, and Antonio Cowart added 13. Tredarius Lee was the fourth Tigers to tally double figures, with 12.

Keyshawn Feazell led Lawrence County with 17 points, and Phillip Moore had 14. The remainder of the team scored just seven. Pat Bridges’ Cougars fell to 20-9 on the campaign, while Hilton Harrell’s Tigers improved to 26-0. Both teams will host first-round 4A playoff games on Tuesday. Lawrence County will host Northeast Jones at 7 p.m.

Lawrence County gave it a good fight in the girls’ game but as has been the case all season, the Lady Cougars couldn’t quite get over the hump against one of the division’s three loaded teams. The defeat relegated Vicki Rutland’s girls to fourth, and they will have to travel to powerhouse Quitman for a Monday playoff game.

Florence led 22-14 after a competitive first half, but the Lady Eagles pulled away as Lawrence County went cold in the third quarter. Florence standout Danyelle Lewis scored 14 of the Lady Eagles’ 22 first-half points, and tallied a game-high 21 for the game. MiKayla Patton scored 11.

Lawrence County was led by Camryn Davis, who scored 14 points. DeNeisha Dickson scored six. LCHS was in foul trouble from the outset, as Dickson and Johnson both fouled out.

Florence, coached by Darrin Chancellor, improved to 21-4 with the win. The Lady Cougars fell to 14-16 with the loss.