The Kosciusko boys and girls basketball teams opened the season with victories. The Whippets defeated Coffeeville 45-39 and the Lady Whippets downed J.Z. George 72-17.“Defensively we were pretty solid. That's the reason we won the ball game,” said boys coach Eleazarus Greenleaf. “We have to continue to learn the offense better. When they completely learn the offense I think we will be a tough team to beat. Right now our defense is ahead of our offense.”Greenleaf said that is because football players had only a few days of practice between the end of the football season and the first game.Antonio Harmon led the Whippets with 24 points and eight rebounds. Davion Roby had eight points and two steals and JaQuan Hall seven points, five rebounds and two steals.Greenleaf is not sure what will be the starting lineup. “Right now we are playing around with the lineup. We're still trying to figure it out to see who is a good fit to play with who. We'll figure it out in the next couple of ball games and go from there.”Hall and Ellis Armon are returning starters. Harmon prefers to come off the bench. “That's where he is most comfortable,” Greenleaf said.Others who will see court time include Jeremy Whitcomb, Keonte Williams, Azikwe Mays, Eshjon Mays and Jaden Collins.The key to success, Greenleaf said, is the transition game. “If we can lock down defensively and transition to run, I think we will be a tough team.”The Whippets were 22-7 last year and finished fourth in Region 4-4A. They were defeated by Pontotoc in the opening round of the playoffs. Harmon was the leading scorer with 11.9 points per game. Hall averaged 11.8 and was the leading rebounder with a 7.8 average.Ariel Fleming led five Lady Whippets in double figures against J.Z. George with 18 points, four assists and two steals. Aaliyah Amey had 16 points, seven rebounds and two steals; Jamiya Gray 12 points, eight steals, seven assists and two blocks; Mariah Woods 11 points and three rebounds, and Jakayla Seawood 10 points and four steals.They are the starting five, with Gray, a sophomore, at point guard. “She’s running the show for us,” said coach Cory Guyton. “There will be a big weight on her shoulders being so young.”Bench strength will be provided by Bracie Jamison and Hannah Olive.“I think we played pretty well on defense. Offense we were a little rusty,” Guyton said of the J.Z. George game. “We have to play consistently night in and night out on both ends of the court, offense and defense.”Other 4-4A teams are Choctaw Central, Louisville, West Lauderdale, Northeast Lauderdale and Leake Central.“This is probably the strongest district in girls basketball,” Guyton said. Greenleaf said “Everybody is tough in our region, top to bottom. It’s going to be a dog fight each night. We’ll have to bring our A-game every night.”The Lady Whippets were 16-10 a year ago but failed to make the playoffs. Fleming is the leading scorer among returning players at 7.6 points a game.The Whippets and Lady Whippets played J.Z. George Tuesday, have a home game Thursday with Neshoba Central and will play West Lowndes Saturday as they host team at the Premier Medical Group Shootout. There will be four boys games and four girls games.McAdams dropped out due to positive COVID-19 tests that resulted in the school going virtual for two weeks, and was replaced by Columbus.
