POPLARVILLE — The MACJC state champ Pearl River Wildcats enter the 2013 NJCAA Region 23 Tournament Wednesday as the No. 1 seed in A.E. Wood Coliseum on the Mississippi College campus in Clinton.
The men’s quarter-finals will be played Wednesday, while the women’s are set for Thursday. Men’s and women’s semi-final rounds are Friday with the championship games set for Saturday.
PRCC head coach Richard Mathis claimed his sixth state championship last Thursday when his Wildcats demolished Mississippi Delta 81-60 in the MACJC title bout.
Pearl River, the tournament host and No. 1 seed from the South Division, opened with a quarter-final victory over Coahoma 85-61 before bouncing back with an impressive 65-62 victory over Northwest Mississippi in Wednesday’s semi-finals.
Against NWCC, the Wildcats trailed 41-24 at the break, but opened the second half with a 22-4 scoring run and eventually outscored the Rangers 41-21 after the intermission to earn their championship berth.
Mathis’ teams have previously won state championships in 1995, 1998, 2003, 2004, and 2010; while he won two other MACJC titles at Northeast Mississippi (men) and East Mississippi (women).
Following Thursday victory, Mathis boasts a 406-210 win-loss mark in his 22 seasons at The River.
Here’s the breakdown of the men’s bracket:
REGION 23 MEN’S TOURNAMENT BRACKET
QUARTER-FINALS
Wednesday, March 6
12:30 PM: No. 3 Baton Rouge (14-13) vs. No. 6 Southwest Mississippi (15-9)
2:30 PM: No. 2 East Mississippi (17-7) vs. No. 7 Mississippi Delta (11-13)
6:00 PM: No. 1 Pearl River (22-4) vs. No. 8 Southern-Shreveport (16-10)
8:00 PM: No. 4 Northwest Mississippi (17-7) vs. No. 5 Jones County (17-7)
SEMI-FINALS
Friday, March 8
12:30 PM: East Mississippi-Mississippi Delta winner vs. Baton Rouge-Southwest Mississippi winner
2:30 PM: Pearl River-Southern-Shreveport winner vs. Northwest Mississippi-Jones County winner
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 9
8:00 PM: Men’s championship game
Here’s the breakdown of the women’s bracket:
REGION 23 WOMEN’S TOURNAMENT BRACKET
QUARTER-FINALS
Thursday, March 7
12:30 PM: No. 2 Northwest Mississippi (18-6) vs. No. 6 Mississippi Gulf Coast (17-7)
2:30 PM: No. 4 Jones County (12-10) vs. No. 7 Baton Rouge (20-8)
6:00 PM: No. 1 Copiah-Lincoln (23-3) vs. No. 8 Meridian (18-10)
8:00 PM: No. 3 Itawamba (16-9) vs. No. 5 Northwest Mississippi (18-6)
SEMI-FINALS
Friday, March 8
6:00 PM: Jones County-Baton Rouge winner vs. Northeast Mississippi-Mississippi Gulf Coast winner
8:00 PM: Copiah-Lincoln-Meridian winner vs. Itawamba-Northwest Mississippi winner
CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 9
6:00 PM: Women’s championship game