Keevon Oney paces Gulfport past Hancock

GULFPORT -- Keevon Oney fired in 24 points as Gulfport turned back Hancock 73-60 to register its first Division 8-6A victory on Tuesday night at Bert Jenkins gymnasium.

Hancock (12-8, 1-1) roared into the Gulfport gymnasium off a Friday upset of Biloxi, its first win over Biloxi since 1981 under coach Roland Ladner.

But Gulfport (13-7, 1-1) had the answers when Hancock rallied to cut Gulfport's lead to 49-41 after three quarters. The Admirals opened the fourth quarter by rebuilding their lead to 59-43. Hancock made another run, narrowing the advantage to 63-52 with 2:51 left. But then Gulfport ran off eight straight points to ice the contest.

"We came out with intensity," Oney, the 6-foot-3 junior guard, said. "We had something like 26 assists, which is our best this season. This is one of my high-scoring games but I have had better games."

Oney also had four rebounds and four steals. Miles Daniels added 10 assists to go with 8 points. Tyrell McArthur and Raekwon Murphy each scored 10 points. Murphy also had seven rebounds, three assists, two steals and drew two charges.

Tyler Butler paced Hancock with 19 points, 15 of which came in the second half. Colby Entriken chipped in 10 points and Brenden Ladner had 9.

"When the tempo got going, it was obviously in our favor," Gulfport coach Owen Miller said. "That's what we want. We had 26 assists tonight, which is a season-high. Maybe that's the highest since we've been here. We moved the ball, we got good shots and we made them. I was pleased with how we attacked their zone.

"We had a lull in the third quarter where we gave up some easy baskets. But I'm pleased. We beat a good team."

Gulfport was coming off an 8-6A loss to Harrison Central.

"We had to protect our floor and we did that," Miller said. "(Keevon) is shooting 50 percent from 3-point range. We are trying to get him more shots. He made shots tonight. He's just a junior. I also thought we got good play from Josh Green. He came off the bench and made some big shots. We need him to give us some offense."

Gulfport led 14-10 late in the first quarter, then outscored Hancock 15-4 to push the lead to 29-14 with 4:20 left. The Admirals led 35-19 at halftime. Then Butler scored eight points in the third quarter to rally the Hawks, and Entriken's trey with 2.7 seconds left in the period drew the Hawks within 49-41.

Gulfport girls 54, Hancock 37: Gulfport (12-8) took command in the second half to win in 8-6A play. Jatiah Latham had 14 points and Aarmanii McDaniel added 13. Sophomore Jaylin Ladner hit for 15 points for Hancock (4-14), which led 19-16 at halftime. Karrington Perkins added 9 points.

This story was originally published January 12, 2016 at 10:07 PM with the headline "Keevon Oney paces Gulfport past Hancock ."