POPLARVILLE — Poplarville’s varsity basketball team beat Pearl River Central 51-32, sweeping the season series 2-0 on Tuesday at PRCC. The Hornets improve to 5-1 on the season while PRC falls to 1-6.

Craig Barnes had 14 points, 9 rebounds and a blocked shot. Zack Taylor led the Hornets in  scoring with 15 points.

A.J. Banks led the Blue Devils in scoring with 9 points on 11 shots.

PRC kept it close through the first quarter as Poplarville only led 12-7. However, PRC committed 21 turnovers throughout the game and never got into an offensive rhythm.

Poplarville Head Coach Chareck Cable said that he wants his guys to stop getting into bad habits on the floor.

“We had a lot of consecutive empty posessions, so we’re trying to cut that down. We’re trying to be great on both ends and be great in transition. We need to put all phases of the game together,” Cable said.

Taylor was able to get to the rim consistently whenever the Hornets needed a basket. He was a large part in fueling their run in the second quarter that gave Poplarville a 35-14 lead heading into halftime.

“He scores well for us and we need that from him, but he does need to be more patient sometimes,” Cable said.

Tyler Griffin gave an energetic performance off the bench for the Hornets with 9 points, 4 rebounds and a blocked shot. 

“He’s so vital for us. He is like a spark plug; he makes a lot of small plays for us and is very versatile. He’s what I call a three dimensional player. He’ll do whatever it takes to help us win,” Cable said.

Poplarville plays Friday at Hancock High School while PRC hosts East Central High School Friday.