BOGUE CHITTO – The No. 1-ranked Bogue Chitto Lady Cats punched their ticket to the “Big Dance” after knocking off the Durant Lady Tigers 70-54 Friday night in the second round of the Class 1A state playoffs.

The Lady Cats (29-3, 4-0), coached by Christi Terrell, will play West Union in the third round of the state tournament at Jackson State University. Tipoff is 10:30 a.m. on Thursday.

Lady Cats 70, Lady Tigers 54 

The Lady Cats came out of the gate on fire as they captured an early 6-0 lead in the first minute of the contest. After a timeout by Durant, the Lady Cats continued their hot shooting to claim a 15-5 advantage. The Lady Tigers would rally back with a 7-0 run to trail BC 17-14 at the end of one quarter.

In the second, both teams traded several baskets, until BC senior guard Zariah Matthew took over and helped her Lady Cats build a 39-30 lead at halftime.

In the second half, the Lady Cats picked up where they left off, outscoring Durant 19-15 to secure a 58-45 lead before heading into the final period.

In the fourth quarter, Matthews controlled the pace of the game with the Lady Cats wearing down the Lady Tigers with a 12-9 run to close out the game.

“This was one of the best games we have played this year,” said Terrell. “I’m so proud of each girl for doing a fantastic job executing our game plan tonight. I am so glad they are a coachable group of young ladies and they play together so well. I love them.”

Matthews powered the Lady Cats with a double-double performance of 39 points, 12 rebounds, five assists and three steals. Karlie Williams contributed eight points, six rebounds and three assists. Shakiriana Jefferson provided seven points and had three steals. Christian Black netted six points, seven rebounds, two assists and had one steal. Lineka Newson scored four points and collected eight rebounds. Karly Leake had four points. Taneshia May added two points and had three rebounds. Terrah Nelson helped defensively with seven rebounds, two assists and one steal.

Tamar Riley directed the Lady Tigers with a team-high 23 points. Takayla Brown contributed with 19 points. Dekia Mitchell had seven points. Kala Sharkey scored three points, and Aquasia Edwards finished with two points.