Hattiesburg Tigers clinch Coca Cola Holiday Classic with 66-54 win over Brandon
HATTIESBURG — The Hattiesburg High Tigers ended a drought in their own tournament.
Behind the play of guards Stephen McCullon and Christian Moody the Tigers got past Brandon 66-54 to claim the Hattiesburg Coca-Cola Holiday Tournament Championship on Saturday night.
It’s the first time since 2015 that the Tigers (15-1) have won the Holiday Tournament that goes back decades.
“The biggest thing about playing a team like Brandon is you have to turn them over and you have to have key possessions because they’re so good at what they do,” said Hattiesburg coach Ernie Watson. “Our guard play is good, and if we can get the lead and you have to come out and guard us, it’s hard to stop us.”
The first half was back-and-forth. Hattiesburg Clung to a 12-9 lead at the end of the first quarter.
After Brandon took a 19-16 lead midway through the second, the Tigers went on a 8-0 run — highlighted by six straight points from Tristan Keys — to go ahead 24-19. Hattiesburg led it 29-23 at halftime.
Logan Burns completed a three-point play midway through the third quarter to put the Tigers ahead 36-28. The Bulldogs responded with a 12-5 run to take a 42-41 lead with 1:06 remaining, but Hattiesburg answered right back with five-straight points to take a 46-42 lead heading into the fourth quarter.
An 8-0 run from the Tigers in the fourth quarter stretch the lead out to 61-48 to put the game out of reach.
For the 15-1 Tigers, it was a statement win.
“We can get to the basket with anyone," Watson said. "But we have got to get our shots down and play some inside defense on a consistent basis. Once we do that we’re going to be fine
"First time since 2015 we’ve won our own tournament and first time since 2015 we closed out the year with a win. Going into the new year with a lot of positive things.”
McCullon had a game-high 20 points to lead Hattiesburg, while Moody added 16 points. Keys and Burns each chipped in 13 points for the Tigers.
“We did a good job of playing defense down the stretch and got turnovers that led to easy baskets,” McCullon said. “The key was getting defensive rebounds and the offense would come, and that’s what happened. Just keep executing and playing well as a team and we will hard to beat.”
Braylon Barnes had 15 points to lead Brandon, while Nate White added 14 points and Ginorrian Banks chipped in 13 points.
“That’s where we are," Brandon coach Fred Barnes said. "We're a young team with guys with not a lot of experience, so we just have turnovers at the wrong time. We’re going to fix that problem. But tonight, Hattiesburg is a well-coached team and they did a good job of taking advantage of our mistakes.”
