CLASS 6A SOUTH REGIONAL: Park Crossing earns trip to Birmingham

Saniya Jackson Shoots a floater in the lane in Park Crossing’s win over McGill-Toolen Wednesday at Garrett Coliseum. (Tim Gayle)

By TIM GAYLE

One half of basketball in the Class 6A South Regional finals had Park Crossing clinging to a 19-18 lead over McGill-Toolen in Wednesday’s game at Garrett Coliseum. Both teams were struggling offensively.

“We missed some shots early and we looked defeated a little bit,” Park Crossing coach Freeah Smith said. “So we went back there (at halftime) and talked about how basketball is about runs. We need one good run. We changed some things, according to what they did, but we just went back to doing what we do.” 

The Thunderbirds came out and ran the floor behind the leadership of point guard Saniya Jackson, scoring 20 points in the third quarter and 22 in the fourth to run away with a 61-38 victory over the Yellow Jackets.

“That’s been our strategy all year, to push the ball,” Smith said. “We knew what we had in shooters and our point guard, Saniya Jackson. McGill slowed us down a little bit early, but once we found our niche, we were good to go.”

Park Crossing (32-1) will play Hazel Green (27-8) in the 6A semifinals on Wednesday at Birmingham’s Legacy Arena at 9 a.m. The Thunderbirds defeated Hazel Green in a meeting earlier this season.

“We played them early this year,” Smith said. “We beat them the first game of the season. We wanted to see where we were and who better to test than the No. 1 team in the state. I think it gives us confidence. Coach (Tim) Miller is going to have his girls ready and we’re going to try and do the same.”

Jackson, the tournament’s most valuable player, led Park Crossing with 22 points, seven rebounds, seven assists and four steals. Maliyah Meeks added 16 points, 11 rebounds and four blocked shots. 

McGill-Toolen point guard Kam Wright led the Yellow Jackets (23-7) with 10 points.

 It is the Thunderbirds’ seventh consecutive postseason trip in eight years under Smith, including trips to the state tournament in two of the last three years. After last year’s trip to Birmingham ended with a semifinal loss to Huffman, the Thunderbirds have bigger goals this season.

“They kind of play with a chip on their shoulder,” Smith said. “Deserving to be No. 1, not always treated as No. 1. That’s how we’re approaching this final four.”

McGill-Toolen 42, Park Crossing 35

The Park Crossing boys fought back from an eight-point deficit to tie the game at 35-35 before the Yellow Jackets scored the last seven points of the game for a 42-35 victory in the South Regional at Garrett Coliseum on Wednesday.

McGill-Toolen (22-8) will face Pinson Valley in the 6A semifinals at Birmingham’s Legacy Arena on Wednesday at 10:30 a.m.

Park Crossing (11-13) trailed 33-25 before Isyaih Scott hit a 3-pointer, Bryant Berry hit four free throws and Musa Ali tied the game with a pair of free throws with 2:10 remaining.

McGill-Toolen jumped back in front when Andrew Muchison was fouled on a basket and converted the free throw for a 38-35 lead with 1:55 left. The Thunderbirds would miss their final four shots to allow the Yellow Jackets to escape with the victory.

Michael May led Park Crossing with 10 points, five rebounds and three blocked shots, followed by Berry with seven points, four rebounds and three steals.

Ethan Stokes led McGill-Toolen with 15 points and 10 rebounds, followed by Muchison with nine points and six rebounds.