By CURTIS ROCKWELL/Sports Director

PASCAGOULA — There’s something about playing Ocean Springs that just sits right with veteran prep basketball coach Ron Norman.

Norman, currently the head coach at Meridian and also the former head coach at Pascagoula, notched his eighth straight win over the Greyhounds Saturday afternoon here at the annual Panther Classic, 53-33.

Norman’s streak over OSHS stretches back to his three seasons at the helm of the Panthers from 2014-2016. Saturday’s win was his fourth consecutive over the Greyhounds in the past four years.

“It’s always fun to come back down to the Coast,” Norman said. “Coach (Pascagoula head coach Lorenzo) Wright and I have played in each others classic events since he succeeded me at PHS. It’s always a measuring stick to what we have to expect in 7A South (in the playoffs). We get to see Biloxi and Ocean Springs all in one day.”

The latest Wildcat win in the series was all Meridian from the tip off.

Meridian’s Derrick Watts scored 11 points in the first half, thanks to a trio of 3-pointers, and Norman’s crew jumped out to a quick 12-4 lead after the first period and stretched that out to double-digits at 25-13 at halftime.

The Greyhounds never managed to cut the deficit to single digits in the second half, as Wildcat Joe Horne took over and tallied 10 of his game-high 17 points in the third frame alone.

Horne’s 17 led MHS, while Watts chipped in 15 points to the winning effort and William Davidson added 12 points.

Jeremy Packer had 12 points to guide the Greyhounds, while Chip Claunch had eight points. Meridian held Christian Cowan, the leading scorer for OSHS, scoreless in the contest.