The Pillow Academy Lady Mustangs put Bayou Academy away in the first half as they cruised to a 55-36 win Tuesday night at home.
The Lady Mustangs improve to 9-0. They will look to stay unbeaten Thursday in the Madison-Ridgeland Academy Tournament with a game against the host team at 7 p.m.
Against Bayou, Pillow pulled away in the second period when junior point guard Anna Katherine Alderman scored three straight uncontested layups off turnovers to put the Lady Mustangs up 29-15. Sophomore Jane Rob Pannell then drained a 3-pointer with 1:07 left in the first half to stretch PA’s lead to 32-15.
Pillow led by as many as 30 in the third period.
Alderman finished with 22 points and had four steals.
Pannell pumped in 14 points to go with seven rebounds and five steals. Sophomore Catherine Grace Lary added eight points, three assists and four rebounds.
In junior high action, the PA girls won 35-31, upping their record to 6-1. Madeline Kelly led the charge with 11 points and five rebounds.
On the boys side, the Mustangs dug themselves in a 38-19 halftime hole with the starting five on the bench for the majority of the first two quarters.
PA simply had no answer for Bayou’s full-court trap, but the Mustangs made a ferocious second-half charge that fell just short as Bayou escaped with a 65-62 victory.
The Mustangs have lost three straight to fall to 2-3.
Junior guard Eli Burton’s layup tied the game at 54 with 2:40 to play, but Pillow never led the rest of the way.
Junior Parker Bariola drained a 3-pointer to make it a two-point game, 63-61, with 38 seconds left. Senior Cleveland Totten missed from beyond the arc at the buzzer with a shot that would have forced overtime.
Totten finished with a team-high 14 points, followed by senior Swayze Pillow with 12 and Bariola with 11.
The Mustangs face MRA Thursday night at 8:30 in Madison.
In junior high action, the PA boys got their first win in five tries.
Shane Houston Stephens and Christian Belk scored 16 and 13 points, respectively, as Pillow beat Bayou 56-34.
nContact Bill Burrus at 581-7237 or bburrus@gwcommonwealth.com.
