The most successful New Hope High School boys basketball teams of recent memory have thrived on a swarming work ethic that suffocates opponents.
That mentality has been passed from team to team — like a prized possession — that is to be nurtured and respected because it can lift a squad out of the deepest doldrums.
New Hope coach Drew McBrayer had to remind his players of that tenacity at halftime Friday after his team fell behind by as many as 13 points and trailed by 10 at the break.
“We have had that toughness recently, and I don’t know where it went in the first half and in the first few minutes of the third quarter,” McBrayer said. “But thank goodness it showed up finally.”
Buoyed by that spark, a key 3-pointer by Demetric Clark, and four free throws by Lawrence Brown, New Hope rallied for a 59-55 victory against Hamilton on Friday night in Columbus.
Moesha Calmes had a game-high 18 points to lead the New Hope girls to a 62-37 victory in the first game. The game was especially satisfying because it helped the Lady Trojans improve to 16-3 (1-1 in the district). The team went 6-16 last season.
In the nightcap, a steal by Chris Mosley with less than two minutes in the third quarter appeared to lift the Trojans’ energy level. The play was part of a 16-1 run in which New Hope capitalized on lapses in Hamilton’s ballhandling and then turned up the defensive pressure. A 3-pointer by Jock Pilgrim (team-high 14 points) with 0.5 seconds remaining in the quarter gave the Trojans a 40-39 lead.
But the Trojans couldn’t sustain the momentum.
Just as quickly as New Hope’s energy rose, it evaporated and Hamilton (12-6) went back to the team game that helped it build its lead. A layup by Cojuante McMillian (11 points) off an assist from Zarrat Sims (nine) pushed Hamilton to a 53-48 lead with 3 minutes, 1 second remaining.
“We stress (sharing the basketball) a lot,” Hamilton coach Devin Hill said. “At times, I think we are a little too unselfish.”
From there, though, New Hope (12-7) found another life. Lawrence Brown (13 points) scored in the lane and Jason Tate (10) had a steal and layup to cut the deficit to 53-52 with 2:24 to go. McMillian’s offensive rebound putback pushed the lead back to three, but Clark answered with a 3-pointer from the left corner to tie the game at 55 with 1:36 to go.
Brown hit both ends of a one-and-one with 1:24 to play, but the Lions couldn’t answer. Hamilton committed a costly turnover on a five-second call and then missed its final three shots. Brown sealed the deal with two free throws with four seconds left.
Hamilton’s lead grew to as many as 38-24 on a hook shot by Ben Seely with 4:55 to play in the third quarter.
Hamilton used an 11-0 run to start the second quarter to build its biggest lead of the game, 27-10, on a layup by Demetrice Trimble (12 points).
Hill said the game was just his second with his entire starting lineup. He said Sims is still nursing an aching ankle, and he feels when he gets back to 100 percent the Lions will be able to hit their stride to make noise in the Class 2A North State playoffs.
“We have lost four close games,” Hill said. “We have beat the teams we are supposed to beat and we have lost to some teams we are supposed to beat, but once we round it all together down the stretch I think we will be all right.”
McBrayer said the Trojans’ showing in the first half was nothing like what the program prides itself on. He waited … and waited … until the Trojans finally found their rhythm for long enough to steal a victory.
“Once they finally decided to show up and bring that energy and that toughness, yeah, you thought, ‘OK, we have a chance’,” McBrayer said. “When you are down like you are, the only way to get back in it is to fight on the defensive end.”
Derrick Sherrod had eight points, and Clark added seven for the Trojans. McBrayer said balanced scoring like that will be a key if the Trojans want to extend their season.
“We have to be balanced and get up and down the court because of our size,” McBrayer said. “At times, our two guards out front try to do a little too much. When they share the basketball, we become a lot better team.”
In the girls game, the Lady Trojans built a 10-0 lead in the first quarter and never looked back. New Hope overcame 10 turnovers in the first half (Hamilton had 11) to take a 32-10 halftime lead. The margin grew to 53-23 on a jump shot by Gabby Murray with 6 minutes, 1 second to go.
“Sixteen was very important for us,” New Hope coach Laura Lee Holman said. “We had two starters — Kaitlin Bradley and Jasmine Gardner — on the bench with injuries. I think we were just out of our routine. They’re young, and any kind of small wrinkle throws them for a loop. Hamilton came out in a box-and-one, and it took us a little while for us to realize, ‘Oh yeah, we have a basketball game tonight’.”
Holman also said a bomb threat that happened at lunch time at the school earlier Friday disrupted the routine of everyone and contributed to her team’s slow start.
Still, she said Calmes, Sanders, and Holifield are three examples of how much the team has improved from last season. After losing to Oxford and beating Saltillo to open district play, Holman said her squad knows what it has to do to advance in the postseason.
“We’re still getting better,” Holman said. “It is fun to see them every night and every day get a little better, a little better. We haven’t peaked yet. I am proud of them. To go from 6-16 to 16-3 is a huge accomplishment.”
D.J. Sanders had 12 points, and Lauren Holifield and Mercedes Mattix each had 11 for New Hope.
Myiah Dobbs led Hamilton with 13 points, wile Mary Wills had seven and Christy Willis had six.
The New Hope girls will play Neshoba Central at 3 p.m., while the boys team will play Southeast Lauderdale at 4:30 p.m. Monday at Meridian Community College.
Adam Minichino is the former Sports Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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