1 of 8

Vicksburg High's Zion Harvey (4) brings the ball up the floor as Center Hill's Karol Key (3) defends during Friday's MHSAA Class 6A girls basketball state tournament game. (Ernest Bowker/The Vicksburg Post)

Vicksburg High's Ny'Keria Watson (5) brings the ball up the floor during Friday's MHSAA Class 6A girls basketball state tournament game against Center Hill. (Ernest Bowker/The Vicksburg Post)

Vicksburg High's Kenley Henderson (12) shoots the basketball during Friday's MHSAA Class 6A girls basketball state tournament game against Center Hill. (Ernest Bowker/The Vicksburg Post)

Vicksburg High's Raylyn Parson goes in for a layup during Friday's MHSAA Class 6A girls basketball state tournament game against Center Hill. (Ernest Bowker/The Vicksburg Post)

Vicksburg High's Cynia Johnson handles the basketball during Friday's MHSAA Class 6A girls basketball state tournament game against Center Hill. (Ernest Bowker/The Vicksburg Post)

Vicksburg High's Zion Harvey handles the basketball during Friday's MHSAA Class 6A girls basketball state tournament game against Center Hill. (Ernest Bowker/The Vicksburg Post)

Vicksburg High's Zion Knox (11) drives toward the lane during Friday's MHSAA Class 6A girls basketball state tournament game against Center Hill. (Ernest Bowker/The Vicksburg Post)

Vicksburg Highassistant girls basketball coach Deatra Cable celebrates after a 64-60 win over Center Hill in the first round of the MHSAA Class 6A state tournament. (Ernest Bowker/The Vicksburg Post)

Vicksburg High’s performance in the first round of the MHSAA Class 6A girls basketball tournament was far from a masterpiece,. That’s OK, though, since it’ll get another chance at turning one in.

Zion Harvey totaled 30 points, seven rebounds, eight steals and six assists, and the Missy Gators grinded their way through a mistake-filled game to beat Center Hill 64-60 on Friday.

The Missy Gators had 17 turnovers and shot only 28 percent from the field. They did, however, find the grit to rally from a nine-point deficit late in the third quarter, win for the fifth time in seven games, and advance to the second round.

“I thought we regressed tonight, but I was more to blame than they were. The things I made adjustments for, I may have outcoached myself. I didn’t need to adjust. We could have played it out and been just fine,” Vicksburg coach Troy Stewart said. “I think we’re still peaking. We’re still on a good note. They’re prepared and ready to go.”

The Missy Gators (18-12) will face Olive Branch (21-8) on Feb. 21 at 4 p.m. at Mississippi Valley State. The winner of that game moves on to the semifinals the following week in Jackson.

Olive Branch beat defending state champion Neshoba Central 85-76 in another first-round game on Friday.

Olive Branch eliminated Vicksburg in the first round of the 2024 Class 6A state tournament.

“I’m going to do all my homework this weekend. But we did play Olive Branch last year. They’ve got a superstar guard/forward combo and a decent center. I’ll get some film on them this weekend and we’ll go to work,” Stewart said.

The Missy Gators will have plenty of things to clean up before going to Itta Bena next week. They struggled with poor shooting and ball control all night and stayed in the game largely because Center Hill (12-17) was having the same issues.

Vicksburg used runs at the end of each of the first three quarters to head into the fourth tied 45-45. The last of those was a 9-0 burst that was ignited by three steals as a team and a pair of baskets by freshman Zion Knox.

“We just had to motivate each other to keep going and not put your heads down when you make a mistake,” Harvey said.

The teams traded short runs in the fourth quarter, again capitalizing on each other’s mistakes, before Vicksburg got the last word by finishing the game on a 10-1 run.

Harvey scored the go-ahead basket with two minutes left to put the Missy Gators ahead 60-59, had another a minute later, and then closed it out with two free throws in the last 30 seconds.

Center Hill’s only point in the last two minutes came from a free throw by Karol Key with 25.9 seconds to go. The Lady Mustangs had two turnovers and missed a 3-pointer in the last 30 seconds.

Key and Kennedy Hulbert led Center Hill with 13 points each. Cynia Johnson finished with 17 points and 19 rebounds for Vicksburg.

Vicksburg’s top two scorers, Harvey and Johnson, combined for 24 of the team’s 29 points in the first half. In the second half, the Missy Gators’ secondary scorers contributed 12 points.

Knox finished with five points, and Carjessa Albert had four to go wth nine rebounds and two assists. Raylyn Parson only scored two points, but those were at the end of a steal and layup in the fourth quarter. Parson had three steals total.

Stewart said the way the role players and young bench picked up their game late made all the difference.

“I want to give all the credit to those eighth-graders. I played all three of them at the same time, with a ninth-grader, when Cynia was sitting. They were the catalyst for that comeback,” Stewart said. “They got the steals, they got the few points to get us back in the game. Acclimating them earlier this season made a difference tonight.”

MHSAA CLASS 6A TOURNAMENT
Girls
First round
Feb. 14
Vicksburg 64, Center Hill 60
Olive Branch 85, Neshoba Central 76
South Panola 48, Columbus 45
Callaway 56, Lake Cormorant 25
Hancock 58, Forest Hill 26
Terry 55, Picayune 26
West Harrison 71, Hattiesburg 43
West Jones 58, Pascagoula 33
Second round
Feb. 21
At Mississippi Valley State
Vicksburg vs. Olive Branch, 4 or 5:30 p.m.
Callaway vs. South Panola, 4 or 5:30 p.m.
Feb. 22
At Mississippi Gulf Coast CC
West Jones vs. West Harrison, 1 or 2:30 p.m.
Hancock vs. Terry, 1 or 2:30 p.m.

About Ernest Bowker

Ernest Bowker is The Vicksburg Post's sports editor. He has been a member of The Vicksburg Post's sports staff since 1998, making him one of the longest-tenured reporters in the paper's 140-year history. The New Jersey native is a graduate of LSU. In his career, he has won more than 50 awards from the Mississippi Press Association and Associated Press for his coverage of local sports in Vicksburg.

More by Ernest

More Sports

Warren Central’s Rob Morgan a finalist for national coaching award

Vikings eye a bright future after state tournament exit

Big two-out rally sends St. Aloysius surging past Manchester

Germantown clips Warren Central tennis, 4-3