Basketball jamborees give coaches an opportunity to see their teams in action against outside competition. Kosciusko hosted a jamboree that included the school's boys and girls teams and McAdams girls. McAdams boys were in action at West Lauderdale.
Each team played a couple of two-quarter contests
Kosciusko Boys
The Whippets defeated Pelahatchie and Yazoo County.
“It went pretty well for us. I got to see things I need to see. I think they did well,” said coach Eleazaurus Greenleaf. “Of course we have some small things we need to clean up. But overall I'm satisfied with how they performed.”
He said Jaybre Pierce,played well on defense and Andrew Mancell, was strong on the boards. Pierce and Mancell were joined in the starting lineup by Perry Lewis, as the point guard, Cory Guyton Jr. and Jeremi Wilkes.
“Those five will be starting as of now.”
All are underclassmen. Lewis and Mancell are juniors, Wilkes a sophomore, Guyton and Pierce freshmen.
McAdams Boys
Coach Kenyon likes to schedule strong competition against teams from larger classifications early in the season to prepare the Bulldogs for Region 6-1A play after the first of the year. It's a formula that has proven successful the last two years as McAdams won the region and reached the 1A state semifinals at the Mississippi Coliseum both years.
That's why the jamboree opponents were Southeast Lauderdale, 3A state runnerup last season, and 4A West Lauderdale. The Bulldogs tied Southeast and suffered a close loss against West.
“It went as I expected,” Ross said. “Playing 3A and 4A schools taught us a lot about what I have been talking about in practice every day. I'm trying to get us ready for the playoffs.”
The starting lineup is not set as Ross awaits the addition of football players when their season ends. “From what I have seen we can go in a number of different directions. Once we have all our bodies we will be able to go about 10 deep. We plan to get up and down the court and put a lot of pressure on people.”
The first game currently on the schedule is at Velma Jackson November 10, but Ross hopes find a game before then.
Kosciusko Girls
Missed free throws were the culprit as the Lady Whippets were defeated by Columbus 17-14 and Yazoo County 9-8.
“I think we missed 10 free throws in the first game and seven in the second game,” said coach Cory Guyton. He will have the players taking a lot of free throws in practice prior to the first game at home next Tuesday against Choctaw County.
“We have a lot of things we have to work on. We have a week and a half to fix those problems,” But he added “Overall as a team we did okay.”
Kosciusko used different lineups during the jamboree as Guyton sought the best mix. “We’re trying to figure it out. We put people in different places to see how they mesh with each other. It will probably be just before the first game before we decide who goes where.”
McAdams Girls
The Lady Bulldogs defeated Madison St. Joseph in the first game before suffering a one-point loss to East Webster.
“The first game, they showed me everything I need to see. They did great,” said coach Ashley Brown. “The second game we had a hiccup.”
The Lady Bulldogs will compete in the Houston Classic Saturday and host Forest Monday. In preparation, Brown will stress conditioning.
