Finishing strong and being resilient has been PRC Head Coach Scott Stevens’ mantra throughout his first year as a Blue Devil, but during Friday’s consolidation match, it was a slow start that led to a crushing 61-45 loss to Stone County.

“We can’t come out playing slow against a team as well-coached as Stone and expect to win; we just can’t,” Stevens said.

The Blue Devils made only one field goal in the first quarter, while allowing Stone to get on a quick run, scoring 14 points. After the opening quarter, Stone began playing as a cohesive unit with 10 players scoring Friday night, including Enrique Whaley who led the team with 17 points, seven rebounds and three assists.

Stone would continue to play close quarters in a man-defense that only allowed PRC to score as many points in the first half as Stone did in its first quarter, walking into the locker room with a score of 30-14. The Blue Devils managed to outscore the Tomcats in the second half, but it wasn’t enough to come back from the 16-point deficit at halftime, which led to PRC losing a spot in the state tournament.

A.J. Banks, who scored 16 points against Stone County, was named the All-District Offensive Player of the Year after Friday’s game. He was also the only Blue Devil to be named to the All-District team. Stone’s Dalan Breland, Caleb Chandler and Brian Milton were named All-District. Tomcats Landon Arnold, who missed a majority of the season due to an appendix surgery, was named as the District Defensive Player of the Year.

Stone will play Wayne County on Tuesday at 7 p.m.

Stone 38-32 Lady Devils

Pearl River Central started on the right foot against the Lady Tomcats Friday night, forcing three early turnovers to take a 7-5 lead going into the second quarter. However, after failing to score more than seven points in any of the first three quarters, Stone took a commanding 15-point lead going into the final stages of the game. In an attempt to break down the lead, PRC scored 18 points in the final six minutes, but after missing a layup to bring the game to a one-possession contest, PRC struggled to bounce back, losing 38-32.

Samantha Orgeron and Brooklyn Howe led the Lady Devils’ late scoring spree, notching 14 of the 18 points in the final minutes. Orgeron finished with 10 points and two assists. Howe pitched in with nine points, including seven in the Lady Devils comeback attempt, and eight rebounds.

Friday’s loss means PRC was eliminated from a state tournament spot.