Pascagoula makes history, becomes first Jackson County school to win hoops crown
Pascagoula will raise the first basketball banner in Jackson County history.
The Panthers defeated Terry, 56-54, at the Mississippi Coliseum on Thursday, securing the first championship in school history and becoming the first basketball program in the county to win a state title.
Mr. 6A Blake Nettles hit a running floater in the lane with 1:04 remaining to give Pascagoula just its third, but final, lead of the evening.
Terry led for the majority of the second half, but never by more than eight, and by only one with 90 seconds left, before Nettles’ go-ahead runner.
“We found a way,” coach Lorenzo Wright said after the game. “We got God on our side. We found a way. We kept fighting and clawing.”
Adam Griffin was named MVP of the contest and led the Panthers in scoring with 15 points, though he fouled out with 1:32 to play in the game. Nettles finished with nine points, six assists and five rebounds.
Pascagoula is the first basketball champion from the Mississippi Coast since Gulfport in 2014, ending a regional drought that had stretched over a decade.
The Panthers won 27 games in Wright’s 10th season at the helm.
This story was originally published March 5, 2026 at 10:00 PM.
