Mustangs mature, endure Comets’ rally
4A-5 BOYS FORREST CITY 66, MILLS 60
During a conversation in November, Forrest City Coach Marcus Britt raved about how his team routinely plays much bigger than they actually are despite their lack of size and experience.
On Friday night, his Mustangs grew up — literally and figuratively.
Melvin Shaw scored a team-high 16 points as Forrest City staved off charge after charge to knock off Mills 66-60 in front of an animated crowd at The Galaxy Gymnasium.
Kesean Washington added 15 points, 8 rebounds and 4 steals and Mykeion White chimed in with 15 points, 4 rebounds and 3 steals for the Mustangs, who picked up perhaps their biggest victory of the season in one of the hardest places to play in the 4A-5 Conference.
“It’s tough to win at Mills, and that’s what I told my guys in the locker room,” said Britt, who is in his first year as the Mustangs’ coach after spending the previous two seasons as an assistant under the late Dwight Lofton. “Any time you can come over here and win, it’s huge. And my guys, they stepped up, especially late. We’re small and we’re young, but they responded to the challenge.
“We’ve been trying to get them to buy in and learn, and [Friday], I think they took a big step.”
Forrest City (8-6, 3-0) also showed that it has what it takes to withstand rallies in hostile territory.
The Mustangs controlled the bulk of the first half and took a 33-26 lead into halftime behind 10 points from White. Forrest City eventually pushed its advantage to 37-28 after a bucket from Washington with 5:59 left in the third quarter before the Comets erupted.
Mills (7-7, 2-1) went on a 13-0 run that spanned the next three minutes. Comets’ leading scorer Q.J. King, who was held without a point in the first half, hit back-to-back three-pointers to jumpstart the flurry. He also scored on a basket inside on the tail end of the rush to give Mills a 4137 lead.
“We started getting some turnovers,” Mills Coach Raymond Cooper said. “We got some deflections, made some stops and started playing better. But Forrest City is a very skilled team, they play hard and they play tough.
“Coach Britt is doing an excellent job with those guys. I knew Coach Lofton would be proud, and we knew they weren’t going to just lay down.”
Instead, the Mustangs bucked up and countered with a run of their own, sparked by Shaw. His free throw and lay-up helped Forrest City end the quarter on a 7-2 spurt and grab a 44-43 lead.
The Mustangs led 46-45 early in the period until another steal and conversion from Shaw started a 9-0 run.
Mills, though, did mount a final push. The Comets cut a 62-49 deficit to 64-60 with less than 14 seconds left after a basket inside from Jaylon Ento. But the Mustangs eventually closed things out when Robert Echols hit a pair of free throws moments later.
“The guys are still learning,” Britt said. “Over the last 1:30, we were up 10. That’s when we have to have that guy that says ‘hey, we’re up 10, let’s try to speed that clock up’. But with a young team, sometimes you’re not gonna get that every game.
“Still, they battled, and that’s what I love about them. This win will give them even more confidence going forward. Coming in and beating a program like Mills, on the road. … it’s big.”
Ento scored 18 points, including 16 in the first half, for Mills. King ended with 15 points and Marcus Kendrick had 14 points.
GIRLS
FORREST CITY 44, MILLS 29
Kyla Morrow had 14 points and Kay’miayha Middlebrooks tallied 10 points as Forrest City (6-4, 1-2) held on.
Charnelle Hoof added 7 points, 8 rebounds and 5 blocks for the Lady Mustangs, who led 30-17 at halftime but watched as Mills (0-7, 0-1) continued to chip away.
Alayzah Foster, who finished with 29 points and 14 rebounds for Mills, hit a short jumper at the start of the fourth quarter that got the Lady Comets within 36-30. But a three-pointer from A’mya Bean began an 8-0 run for Forrest City, which allowed it to re-establish a double-digit lead.