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Meridian Wears Down Panthers

MERIDIAN WEARS DOWN PANTHERS

Meridian High School utilized a wealth of bench talent to overcome an early deficit and wear down Quitman High School en route to a 67-46 win. Don'Taidrae Scott, Tyron Brewer and David McCoy combined to score 44 points off the bench to help lift their squad to a win in boys basketball action Tuesday night. "I'm really thrilled to be able to reach to my bench (with confidence)," Meridian coach Randy Bolden said. "I have guys that are ready to play. I was really proud of our bench; they saved us (Tuesday). ... David McCoy made shots and made plays on the defensive end. Big (Don'Taidrae) Scott came in, and he was huge in the middle — a lot of defensive plays and offensive rebounds. I just think overall it was a good team effort." McCoy led Meridian (7-1) with 29 points, including seven 3-point makes. "I try to remain focus and be ready to execute whatever Coach (Bolden) tells me to do," McCoy said. "I hit a couple of shots, and I just got it going. Coach (Bolden) kept getting (the ball) to me. Quitman jumped out to a 9-0 to start the game and led 21-20 after the first quarter. "Early on, we matched their intensity and set the tempo of the basketball game," Quitman coach Chris Coleman said. "We had some forced turnovers, but we were prepared for what they were going to do. It's not like you don't know what Meridian is going to do (pressing defensively)." Yet Meridian's depth proved to be too much as it stormed back in the second quarter to control a 40-29 halftime advantage. "We (the bench) try to make sure we're focused and come in with energy," McCoy said. "You have to have energy when you're coming off the bench." The Panthers were led by post players Thurston McCarty and Josh Beard, who had 12 and 10 points, respectively. Additionally, Tyler Coleman had 12 points, while Sayveon Bumpers had nine points. "McCarty had his third foul in the second quarter. We're not going to win ball games with Thurston McCarty on the bench," Coleman said. "The key to our success starts and ends with Thurston. But I was happy with Josh Beard. Sayveon Bumpers, the sky is the limit for that kid, but he just has to learn to play through adversity." Meridian will host Neshoba Central High School Saturday, which defeated the Wildcats 80-73 Nov. 19. "We're just trying to get better each game," Bolden said. "We're far away from where we want to be, but each day we're getting better. It's a young group that believes in each other and believe in what we're doing, and they're just hungry." Meanwhile, Quitman will host Southeast Lauderdale Tuesday night.

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