Malik Newman didn’t score a single point Tuesday.

That was the good news for the Vicksburg Gators. The bad news was, Callaway didn’t need him to.

Newman, the Chargers’ All-America guard, didn’t play because of a minor ankle injury. The rest of the Chargers ably filled in, though, as Wesley Harris and Demencio Vaughn scored 21 points apiece to lead Callaway to a 79-57 win over Vicksburg in the first round of the Division 4-5A Tournament.

Callaway advanced to Friday night’s championship game against Lanier. Vicksburg will play the third-place game at 5:30 p.m. against Pearl for the right to advance to the Class 5A state tournament.

“They’re still tough. They’ve still got two 6-8 guys and a 6-9 down inside. (Vaughn) could be a Dandy Dozen as well. They’ve got a bunch of good players,” Vicksburg coach Dellie C. Robinson said. “We made a run. I thought the kids gave it everything they had. But even with Malik not there, they’re still a powerful team.”

Callaway coach David Sanders said Newman, who is averaging 30.4 points per game, injured his ankle Saturday against Wisconsin’s Dominican High School and sat out Tuesday’s game as a precaution.

After beating the Gators by 22 and 36 points in their first two meetings this season, Sanders said he felt confident his players could get the job done without their superstar.

“We just wanted to rest him. We dressed him out just in case we needed him, but we wanted to see if we could get through this without him and give him a couple more days to rest,” Sanders said. “It’s definitely a good sign. Vicksburg is a good team, they fought hard, and we were still able to get the win. It’s definitely a testament to how well we played as a team.”

The Gators (13-13) fell behind by 13 points in the first quarter, but stopped the bleeding there for a time. They got within nine late in the third quarter, then Callaway (26-2) dropped the hammer.

The Chargers went on a 13-0 run spanning the third and fourth quarters to go up 66-42 with 7:27 left.

The biggest blow during the run was an awkward, off-balance 3-pointer by Marcus Summerville at the third-quarter buzzer that put the Chargers up by 20.

Summerville finished with 10 points for Callaway, while Kirk Parker led Vicksburg with 15. No other Gator scored more than six.

Five Gator seniors who quit the team last week returned Tuesday.

“They came back and they wanted to finish the season out. I told them they were welcome to come back,” Robinson said. “They did a great job (Tuesday) and it was a difference in our team when they came back. We mended fences, they came back, and I’m glad they came back because they’re a great group of guys.”

(G) Callaway 51, Vicksburg 37

Vicksburg shot 21.1 percent from the field (11-for-52), went 12-for-30 from the foul line and committed 26 turnovers while losing to Callaway in the first round of the Division 4-5A Tournament.

Keiyana Gaskin led Vicksburg (10-16) with 11 points and four steals, and Karry Callahan had six poins and 20 rebounds.

Tiara Robins had 21 points for Callaway (18-5).

Vicksburg trailed by five midway through the third quarter when Callaway scored eight straight points in just over a minute to go up 29-18 with 4:34 left.

Vicksburg got back within nine, only to give up a 3-pointer to Arbanee Harper with a minute left. The margin never got back into single digits, and Callaway led by as many as 18 in the fourth quarter.

Callaway advanced to play Pearl in the championship game Friday night, while Vicksburg and Lanier will play for third place and a state tournament berth Friday at 4 p.m.

Pearl beat Lanier 47-42 in Tuesday’s other first-round game.

Division 4-5A Tournament

Girls

Tuesday

Callaway 51, Vicksburg 37

Pearl 47, Lanier 42

Friday

Consolation game – Vicksburg vs. Lanier, 4 p.m.

Championship – Pearl vs. Callaway, 7 p.m.

Boys

Tuesday

Callaway 79, Vicksburg 57

Lanier 56, Pearl 54

Friday

Consolation – Vicksburg vs. Pearl, 5:30 p.m.

Championship – Lanier vs. Callaway, 8:30 p.m.