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Photo by Adam Northam/Bogue Chitto junior forward Darius Porter (right) works inside Enterprise senior Hunter Bland for a close-range jumper Tuesday night in the Bobcats’ 72-54 victory.

Photo by Adam Northam/The Bogue Chitto Bobcats gained a 72-54 victory Tuesday over the Enterprise Yellow Jackets.

Photo by Adam Northam/The Bogue Chitto Bobcats gained a 72-54 victory Tuesday over the Enterprise Yellow Jackets.

Photo by Adam Northam/The Bogue Chitto Bobcats gained a 72-54 victory Tuesday over the Enterprise Yellow Jackets.

Photo by Adam Northam/The Bogue Chitto Bobcats gained a 72-54 victory Tuesday over the Enterprise Yellow Jackets.

Photo by Adam Northam/The Bogue Chitto Bobcats gained a 72-54 victory Tuesday over the Enterprise Yellow Jackets.

Photo by Adam Northam/The Bogue Chitto Bobcats gained a 72-54 victory Tuesday over the Enterprise Yellow Jackets.

Photo by Adam Northam/The Bogue Chitto Bobcats gained a 72-54 victory Tuesday over the Enterprise Yellow Jackets.

Photo by Adam Northam/The Bogue Chitto Bobcats gained a 72-54 victory Tuesday over the Enterprise Yellow Jackets.

Bogue Chitto’s Bobcats kept the score keepers busy against Enterprise Tuesday night, converting on possession after possession to put down a solid Yellow Jackets attack 72-54.

The Bobcats stayed out front of Enterprise in every quarter but the third, when the Yellow Jackets battled back hard to take the period 19-18 and close to within nine points. But Bogue Chitto’s offense stayed fresh and kept pressing to the basket, and Enterprise’s opportunity slipped away as the gap widened in the fourth.

“Enterprise played very good, but when we started pressing hard, man-to-man, it created more turnovers, more steals, more points for us,” said Bobcats junior Darius Porter. “That’s just how we like to play ball — we’ve all been playing like that since seventh grade. We practice hard, and when we play, we play hard.”

The Bobcats dominated the boards, out-rebounding Enterprise 38-24. Team play was critical — Bogue Chitto’s handlers fed each other a whopping 19 assists and turned the ball over only eight times.

Bobcats junior Jermaine Black said the team utilized some hard-learned lessons from the previous night, when they lost to Region 7-2A leader Amite County by one point.

“We played a good game last night, but we didn’t do enough, so we came out playing hard tonight,” he said. “They couldn’t contain our post man. That was a dominant spot, so we played team ball and looked for ways to get it in to him.”

Black referred to junior center Malik Richardson, who — at 6-foot-5 — has been difficult for opposing teams to check in the paint. Richardson led the Bobcats in scoring with 22 points and was on the receiving end of most of the assists. Porter backed him up with 21 points, and junior Brandon Lewis threw in 11.

Sophomore Zach Upkins had nine points, and junior Cameron Gladdens scored seven. Junior Damarcus Godbolt hit a single free throw.

The Bobcats are playing as good as anyone in the region. They face a big test tonight against region foe West Lincoln before next week’s region tournament at Enterprise.

Coach Mark Pitts said everything that can be done has been done to prepare for the tournament and beyond.

“At this stage in the game, we don’t want to make any changes,” he said. “If it works, it works. If it don’t, it don’t.”

The Yellow Jackets, meanwhile, remain in a state of flux. A savage season has left them at 2-14 overall and 0-8 in the region, with both their victories coming against the winless Salem Wildcats.

“We’re still trying to figure out our strengths and weaknesses, even at this late point in the year,” said Enterprise coach Shane Adams. “But the guys continue to play better, and tonight they played a little more under control. I thought they did a great job and played hard the whole game.”

The Yellow Jackets had three players shoot double digits against Bogue Chitto. Juninor Peytin Jergins led with 16 points, and senior Cade Feltus was right behind him with a dozen. Senior Hunter Bland dropped in 10 points.

Freshman Dylan Carter scored eight points, and senior JeVante Jenkins scored six. Juniors Hunter Cothern and Jalon Grinstead scored two each.

Enterprise’s regular season is over. They host the region tournament next week. Matchups will not be finalized until Monday.

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