A basketball team is a lot like a jigsaw puzzle. Find the right pieces, and everything fits into place. Get the wrong pieces, and it just doesn’t work.

The Vicksburg Gators fell into the latter category this season, and no amount of finagling, twisting or brute force ever seemed to bring the picture together.

The Gators lost 56-54 to Holmes County Central last week in the first round of the Class 5A state tournament to finish a season in which they never won more than three games in a row. They finished with an 11-17 record, which marked the first time the program has had back-to-back losing seasons since the 2003-04 and 2004-05 seasons.

“I really thought we were going to be better than what we were. We lost 10 games by three, four, five, six points,” Vicksburg coach Dellie C. Robinson said.

“We just never could get anything consistently going. We’d play a couple of good games and then have a few bad ones.”

The Gators did have a few bright spots. Junior forward Kirk Parker averaged a double-double, and the team upset top-seeded Neshoba Central — a team that had beaten VHS by 24 and 22 points in two regular-season games — in the Division 4-5A tournament. They then pushed a talented Holmes County Central team to the limit before losing in the state tournament.

There was a lot more inconsistency and misfortune than stellar play, however.

Vicksburg only averaged 43.5 points per game, more than 10 points per game less than last season and its lowest total in the past 10 years.

Ironically, two of the team’s best players were indirectly responsible for the low output.

Parker missed nearly half the season with an elbow injury. Once he returned, both the offense and opponents’ attention was focused on him. Other players occasionally stepped up to ease the pressure, like when junior forward Raheam Moore scored 27 points in the regular season finale against Brandon, but not consistently.

The lack of a true point guard also forced senior K.J. Murphy to play the position. Murphy is a solid player who averaged in double figures in scoring, but is more of a scorer than a distributor. When he was forced to run the offense, it often took away a second scoring threat.

“I think we were missing a couple of pieces,” Robinson said. “We don’t have a true point guard or a player that can shoot from the outside. That’s two pieces we have to find next year. If we can pick up those pieces, we can be a real good basketball team.”

Although this turned into a lost season, Robinson said he believes the Gators have the potential for a quick turnaround. Parker has one more season before he heads off to the college ranks, and Moore and guard Joe Thomas showed flashes of brilliance this season.

Help might be on the way for the point guard problem as well. Freshman Jeremiah Brown will move up to the varsity team after playing well for the JV this season.

“It’s no doubt about it, we could go from 11-17 to 20-plus (wins) next year. We’ve got the pieces in place to do it,” Robinson said. “We’ve got the pieces there, and it’s if we can develop it over the summer.”