You win or you go home. After one of the hardest-fought games in the MHSAA playoffs, the Thomas E. Edwards Tigers’ season ended with a heartbreaking 46-42 loss to the Quitman Panthers on Wednesday at the Mississippi Coliseum. The Panthers will take on St. Stanislaus for the 3A Boys state basketball title on Saturday at 4 p.m.
Akerrion Ingram led the Tigers with 14 points, while Anthony Townsend scored nine, Kentavious Hawkins added seven, and Tyondis Willis contributed six. Missed free throws and double-digit turnovers proved to be the Achilles' heel for both teams, but the Panthers made their free throws down the stretch to secure the win. The Tigers shot 10-for-26 from the free-throw line, shooting 38%, while the Panthers were 17-for-27, hitting 63%. The Tigers committed 20 turnovers, whereas the Panthers had 13.
The Tigers started the game with a full-court press on defense, and the Panthers responded by keeping both teams' offenses at bay. The Tigers scored five points — all from free throws — in the first quarter, while Quitman had one field goal and three free throws, tying the score at 5-5.
In the second, each team found its offense and traded buckets while keeping up the full-court press. The Tigers’ biggest lead, 17-14, came when Tyondis Willis hit one-of-two free throws with 2:03 left in the second. Quitman would tie it up on an “and one” play — layup and foul with 1:07 left. The Tigers retook the lead when Thomas Foster hit one of two free throws with 52 seconds left, making it 18-17, but the Panthers took a lead into the locker room after adding a layup on a rebound, making it 19-18. The Tigers couldn’t get off a shot at the end of the half.
Coming out in the third, the frenetic pace continued, along with missed free throws for both teams. Quitman scored a 2-pointer to extend their lead to 21-18, but Ingram grabbed an offensive rebound and put it back to close the gap to 21-20. On their next possession, Townsend was fouled but made the “in the paint” shot to gain the lead, 23-21. A Panther layup tied the game, but Willis hit a 3-pointer to retake the lead, 26-23 – the first-made 3-pointer for the Tigers. The Panthers responded with two free throws to narrow the score to 26-25 with 1:30 remaining in the third. Ingram then went 1-for-2 at the line to make it 27-25 with one minute left.
A goaltending call on Edwards would tie the score at 27 and the Panthers would end the quarter with the lead, hitting 1-of-2 free throws with five seconds left and a 28-27 lead.
The fourth quarter drama continued, and the Panthers worked up to a four-point lead, 34-30, with 5:12 left on a 3-pointer. Townsend was on the bench with four fouls at the start of the fourth quarter but re-entered with 4:10 remaining in the game. The Panthers fought back to a six-point lead, 38-32, converting steals into points, but the Tigers gradually closed the gap, with Ingram and Townsend scoring in the paint to cut the margin to two, 38-36, with two minutes remaining.
A Tiger foul sent Quitman to the line, where they made both free throws, extending the lead to 40-36 with 1:40 remaining. Ingram grabbed a rebound and put it back, closing the gap to two points, 40-38, with only 50 seconds left. Facing no choice, the Tigers fouled and put the Panthers on the free throw line; the lead grew to 43-38. Townsend scored more points in the paint, bringing the lead back down to two, 44-42, with under 20 seconds remaining. The Tigers fouled again, and the Panthers sealed the win with two free throws, making it 46-42 with 1.3 seconds left. A final heave missed, ending the Tigers' hope for a second state championship as they fell short, 46-42.
The Tigers danced until the music stopped on a magical season finishing with a 22-13 overall record.
