HOULKA — Adrian Potter scored 21 points as Pontotoc held on to beat Houlka 69-63 on Friday night.
Leading 53-44 with 5:34 left in the fourth quarter, the Warriors (16-12, 7-3 Region 1-4A) saw the Wildcats (8-17, 2-4 Region 4-1A) storm back to make it 64-61 on a Kevin Moore lay-up with 46.6 seconds left in the game.
That’s when Pontotoc senior Josh Green took over the contest.
Green connected on one-of-two free throws before picking off a Houlka pass and converted a transition basket to give the Warriors a 67-61 lead with 33.1 ticks left on the clock. Houlka got an offensive putback to pull within four points, but Green stole another pass and connected on a pair of free throws with 2.1 seconds left to give Pontotoc the 69-63 victory.
Moore scored 19 points for the Wildcats, Dante Turner and Corey Pulliam added 13 each, and Brandon Isabell had 10 points.
Green finished with 17 points for the Warriors.
Pontotoc 56 Houlka 38 (G)
The Lady Warriors (21-3, 7-2 Region 1-4A) saw a 34-16 halftime lead quickly evaporate in the third quarter as the Lady Wildcats (10-14, 4-1 Region 4-1A) battled back to make it a 39-30 ballgame in favor of Pontotoc on a lay up at the buzzer by Ranesha Townsend.
A spirited speech from Coach Bill Russell got the Lady Warriors in gear as they quickly retook control of the game and outscored Houlka 17-8 in the final frame to pick up the 56-38 win.
Ebony Brinker scored a game-high 20 points, Anna Rosenbaum added 16, and Rhandi Ball had 10 points for Pontotoc.
Candiace McIntosh scored 13 and Townsend finished with 10 points for Houlka.
