Mikayla Riley leads Tupelo past Biloxi in MHSAA 6A Semifinal

JACKSON — Tupelo will play for the state title for the first time in 16 years after outlasting Biloxi 56-45 in the semifinal round of the MHSAA Class 6A Tournament Wednesday night at the Mississippi Coliseum.

The Golden Wave (26-2) used a familiar recipe to cook up their eighth-straight win: stifling defense and the hot hand of star guard Mikayla Riley.

The senior scored 26 points, making nine of her 21 shots from the field, including two her three shots from beyond the arc.

"I got a little frustrated early because they were face guarding me," Riley said. "But I figured out how to deal with it in the second half, got to my spots and got some shots to fall."

Tupelo led it 24-23 at the half and 36-31 after three quarters. The Golden Wave didn't pull away until the fourth, when Biloxi (25-7) ran out of gas, and fouls.

The Lady Indians' length gave the Golden Wave some fits early. Biloxi's 6-foot-4, eighth-grade center Zaniya Johnson and senior forward Shaneal Corpuz both had big first halves.

But they, too, wore down over the course of the game. Johnson got into foul trouble after Tupelo made a point of rotating and driving right at her. She fouled out early in the fourth quarter.

"Their length did give us some trouble early in the game as far as going inside," Riley said. "But we did a good job of targeting (Johnson) with drives and got her into foul trouble, and eventually out of the game."

Corpuz finished with a team-high 22 points and 14 rebounds. The loss was the first for the Indians in more than a month.

For Tupelo, it's on to the state title and a showdown with All-American Madison Booker and the Germantown Lady Mavericks.

"We're excited," Justice said. "We were all just dancing in the locker room. We're so proud to be here at the 'Big House.' It's been a while since 2007, and I'm just happy for the school, the city and community. We just need to finish."