The Pass Christian Pirates couldn’t find a bucket when they needed one on Saturday and lost to the Morton Panthers 38-32 in Poplarville at Marvin R. White Coliseum on the Pearl River Community College campus.
The basketball season ended for the Pirates (22-10 overall, 10-0 in region) for the second consecutive year in the Class 4A state quarterfinals. Pass Christian fell to the Raymond Rangers in the 2024 quarterfinals.
Scoring summary
Jumping on the scoreboard quickly against the Panthers, the Pirates opened up with a layup by senior center Jonathan Jackson.
Morton countered with a few baskets. However, Pass Christian answered every basket.
Kyran Laneaux led the Pirates during the first quarter, knocking down three jump shots for a 14-13 Pass Christian lead at the end of the period.
The second period was Morton’s time to slow down the game and set up a 2-3 zone defense. With this installation, Pass Christian could not find a basket and gave up multiple turnovers to score only three points. The halftime score was in favor of Morton 20-17.
Coming out of the gates in the second half, the Pirates used their transition play more effectively as point guard Perry Williams drove to the basket a few times and Jackson hit a few quick jumpers for a 29-28 Pass Christian lead after three quarters.
Inside of two minutes in the fourth quarter and a tie game, a Pass Christian turnover led to a 6-0 run by Morton. With just under 1:30 left, Williams missed a 3-pointer, and the game was essentially over as the Panthers’ protection of the ball was inevitable.
What the coach said
Coach Robin Sikes kept the basketball history in Pass Christian alive and well.
“Two teams that deserved to be here,” said Sikes, who brought Pass Christian to the 2025 state quarterfinals in his first season with the Pirates. “From any level down, you can’t give a team extra possessions. The game is about makes or misses and we missed 14 layups. Some of them were contested, but you have to be able to put the ball in the hole.”
Pirates basketball history
Since losing in the state championship in Jackson 14 years ago, Pass Christian hasn’t returned to the Big House despite winning numerous region titles and reaching the state quarterfinals a few times.
Pass Christian does have a rich basketball history with a state championship in 2009 and not losing a region game in the last two years.
