Wolves Lose Thriller in Regular Season Finale

WESSON – The Co-Lin Men's Basketball team played host to Northwest to close out the 2022 regular season on Thursday, February 17. The Rangers and Wolves needed double overtime to decide a winner, but ultimately the Rangers got the win, 99-92.

The Wolves used the opening minutes of the first half to take an early 11-10 lead with 15 minutes of play remaining. The Rangers responded with a 12-5 scoring run to take a 22-16 lead with just under ten minutes left in the half. The Wolves then went on a 13-8 scoring run to cut the lead down to 30-29 with five minutes remaining in the first half. The Wolves then closed out the half with an 8-3 scoring run to take a 37-33 lead into the locker rooms at halftime.

The Wolves extended their lead to 53-44 with 15 minutes remaining in the second half behind the strength of a 16-11 scoring run. The lead grew for the Wolves over the next few minutes with a 10-5 scoring run to make the score 63-49 with just under ten minutes of play remaining in the game.  The Rangers then closed out the game with a 23-9 scoring run including hitting the game-tying shot with one second left to send the game into overtime tied at 72-72.

In the first overtime period, the Wolves held an 80-76 lead with two minutes remaining, but the Rangers responded with a 7-3 scoring run to tie the game once again at 83-83 and send the game to a second overtime period. In the second overtime period, the Rangers outscored the Wolves, 16-9, to secure the 99-92 win.

The Wolves had a trio of players tied for the team lead in points as sophomore guards Jemario Hersey (Brookhaven) and Kedarius Stampley (Fayette) along with sophomore forward AJ Warnsley (Byram) each had 18 points during the contest. Warnley and Stampley both also had double-doubles on the night as Warnsley tied his career high on rebounds with 18 to go along with five assists, three steals, and two blocks which led the team in all categories while Stampley had 12 rebounds with four assists, two steals, and one block. Hersey added six rebounds and one steal to his stats for the contest.

Sophomore guard Cameron Butler (Vicksburg) had 13 points with five rebounds and two assists while freshman guard Constantine Morant had eight points with three rebounds. Sophomore guards Jordan Marshall (Raymond) and Lerenzo Fort III (Jackson) had seven points each with Marshall adding seven rebounds while Trey Fort had two rebounds and three assists. Freshman guard Gideon Peacock (Jackson) had two points and sophomore center Robert Finklea (Biloxi) had one point to round out the scoring for the Wolves.

Co-Lin finishes the 2022 regular season 6-16 overall and 3-11 in conference play. The Wolves will return to action playing in the Region 23 tournament on Saturday, February 26 with the opponent, time, and location to be determined.