FLOWOOD — The Warren Central Lady Vikes didn’t shoot particularly well, and were downright careless with the basketball in the second half. It was far from their finest hour this season, and yet they managed to drag Northwest Rankin down into the muck alongside them and slog their way to another victory.

Aniya Sanders had 10 points and eight rebounds, and Amber Gaston had seven points, eight rebounds and six blocked shots as the Lady Vikes beat Northwest Rankin 36-25 on Tuesday night.

Warren Central committed 26 turnovers — 18 in the second half — but used a big run late in the first half and a solid defensive effort to keep the Cougars at bay.

Northwest Rankin was led by Maya Jones with 10 points, but no one else had more than four. The Cougars only scored eight points in the first half.

“Any win is a good win. That was a very ugly win,” Warren Central coach Jackie Glass said.

Dominique Caldwell added eight points for the Lady Vikes. Cocoa Fultz had nine rebounds, and Kiara Lockhart had six points and six steals.

Warren Central (14-4) won its fifth consecutive game heading into Saturday’s matchup with crosstown rival Vicksburg, and the Division 4-6A opener at home against Clinton next Tuesday.

Considering the team’s record, and the fact it held a good Northwest Rankin (11-3) team to a season-low 25 points, Glass was happy with the outcome despite some stretches of uneven play.

“I’m excited where we are. I told the girls that people look at us as a defensive team, so we don’t have room to come out there and not go hard defensively. When we were not scoring, we were still able to hold them to 25 points. We’ve got to really plan on our defense and know that’s what’s going to win games and championships for us,” Glass said. “Going forward, I think our girls’ confidence is up to the point where they feel like they’re getting some respect so they’ve got to go out and prove it.”

The Lady Vikes gained some separation with a 12-3 run to end the first half. They held Northwest Rankin scoreless for nearly five minutes and surged out to a 23-8 lead at halftime.

The lead stayed around 10 points for most of the second half. Northwest Rankin got as close as nine late in the third quarter when Jones hit a 3-pointer and Dee Dee Walker was fouled on a 3-point attempt and made all three free throws to cut it to 27-18.

WC’s Shae White scored in the final minute to push the lead back to double digits heading into the fourth quarter. Northwest Rankin was unable to mount enough offense to make a run in the final period, and Warren Central turned it over too often to make a game-breaking run. The two teams essentially played to a stalemate as the Lady Vikes hung on.

“I thought the first half we came out and did some things I liked. We only had eight turnovers and held them to eight points, but the third quarter we came out and seemed like we went away from what was working,” Glass said. “A couple of them maybe tried a little too hard to put them away and it worked out they got some breaks and went on a run. Basketball is a game of runs, and they just made a run on us. Luckily we were able to counter with a small run and keep our composure enough to close it out.”

(B) Northwest Rankin 39, Warren Central 32

Matthew Mackey scored 13 points and Jackson Ainsworth added 10 as Northwest Rankin’s boys team beat Warren Central.

Chavis Smith hit two 3-pointers in the fourth quarter and finished with 10 points to lead Warren Central (7-6). Raleigh Floyd added seven points, and no other Vikings scored more than four.

(G) Trinity 62, Porters Chapel 21

D’Asia Mitchell scored 30 points, Jasmine Ivory added 20, and Trinity blew out Porters Chapel Academy after a sluggish start. Trinity (4-8, 1-0 District 5-AA) outscored the Lady Eagles 21-5 in the second quarter to take a 22-point lead into halftime.

Rheagan Smith and Cameron Yocum scored eight points apiece to lead Porters Chapel.

(B) Trinity 63, Porters Chapel 27

Trinity held Porters Chapel Academy to 14 points in the first half and rolled past the Eagles on Tuesday night.

David Jackson scored a game-high 22 points for Trinity (8-3, 1-0 District 5-AA), which led 42-14 at halftime. Dee Fleming scored 10 and DeSanto Rollins added nine.

Glen Alan Kittrell led PCA with 11 points.