Moss Point rallies behind a roaring crowd in Biloxi to advance in the state tourney
The Moss Point girls basketball team rode a huge third quarter rally, scoring more points than it had in the first two quarters to take a lead it would not surrender on the way to a win Friday in the Class 4A quarterfinals at the Mississippi Coast Coliseum.
Moss Point won 43-28 win over McComb after trailing 14-13 at halftime.
The Lady Tigers rode the basket-attacking Robyn Lee in the third quarter as she broke through the McComb man-to-man defense for layups and short-range jumpers. The senior guard scored 12 of Moss Point’s 16 points in the period.
The rally continued in the fourth quarter as Lee scored the Lady Tigers’ first six points to open the quarter, extending their lead to double digits (35-24) after back-to-back layups, the second coming off a steal.
“We jumped into our little defense that we’ve been working on, and I think that kind of confused McComb,” Moss Point coach Ethan Porter said. “We got a couple of turnovers and Robin Lee took it to another level.
“It’s expected,” said Porter of Lee’s scoring burst in the third and fourth quarters. “She’s a great player. She always works on her game. She’s always in the gym. Time and time again she steps up in big moments. I was just waiting for this to happen tonight.”
Lee finished the night with a game high 31 points, 8 rebounds and four steals. It was a spectacular performance as the crowd roared every time she touched the ball in the game’s closing minutes, anticipating seeing something magical.
“It’s nothing new,” Lee said. “I practice it in practice all the time. I was just waiting for the opportunity, and it came.
“It means a lot,” said Lee of the win. “We’re expecting to go back to Jackson and win there. We’re trying to win a state title.”
Moss Point led by one point (8-7) after one quarter of play, but the second quarter came with some struggle as they didn’t score a field goal until the 1:18 mark of the period. They sank three free throws to total 5 points in the period.
Moss Point outscored McComb 16-8 in the third quarter and 30-14 in the second half.
The Lady Tigers (24-7) will play Pontotoc (30-3) in the Class 4A semifinals at 5:30 p.m. on Monday at the Mississippi Coliseum in Jackson.
Pontotoc beat Choctaw Central 70-61 on Friday to advance.
The Moss Point girls basketball team has never won a state championship.
This story was originally published February 28, 2020 at 10:46 PM.