JACKSON — Oak Forest’s plan was simple, pound the ball in the paint, and Pillow Academy had no answer.
Caylon Brabham, a freshman center for Oak Forest, had 15 of her game-high 26 points in the second half as the Lady Yellow Jackets ended the Lady Mustangs’ season with a 56-48 victory here Wednesday in the quarterfinals of the State AAA Division II Tournament.
“We tried a little bit of everything — a 2-3 zone, a 1-3-1 zone, a half-court trap and man-to-man. We just didn’t defend well enough or put enough pressure on the ball,” said PA coach Durwin Carpenter.
It was a bitter loss for the Lady Mustangs, who had won 10 of their last 11, including a victory in their regular-season finale to win the North AAA Division II title. Carpenter didn’t see this quick postseason exit coming.
“I can’t understand it because I really thought our girls were ready to play, but we didn’t play up to our capability. And when you do that in this tournament, you have a good chance of losing,” Carpenter said. “I thought we were at a spot we needed to be for a good postseason run, but sometimes things just don’t go your way.
“But I am proud of how far our girls came this year and how much they improved with each game.”
The Lady Mustangs, who finished the year at 19-9, trailed 17-12 at the end of the first period and never led the rest of the way.
Oak Forest, which advances to Friday’s semifinals to face East Rankin, led 30-25 at the half.
Pillow opened the third period with a 5-0 spurt to tie the game. April Leonard’s putback made it 30-30 at the 5:20 mark.
But Brabham responded on the other end with a three-point play, and Oak Forest led the rest of the way.
PA senior guard Mary Key Britt did her best to keep the Lady Mustangs in it down the stretch, hitting three 3-pointers in the fourth period.
Pillow got within three, 43-40, on a jump shot from Kathleen Gallagher, but Brabham sparked a 7-0 run that left Oak Forest in charge with a 53-43 lead with 1:53 to play.
Britt then scored five straight points, but that was as close as Pillow could get.
Britt finished with a team-high 16 points and pulled down five rebounds. Gallagher had 14 points.
