Warren Central picked a great time — the best time, in fact — to snap out of its long slump.

Nash Morgan had a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds, and Jaylon Winters scored 16 points as Warren Central defeated Neshoba Central 64-61 on Tuesday in the first round of the MHSAA Region 2-6A boys’ basketball tournament.

The Vikings led nearly the entire game and snapped an eight-game losing streak with a balanced effort. In addition to Morgan and Winters, DJ Gibbs scored 10 points and Micah Moore had eight.

Robert Williams was close to a double-double with eight points and eight rebounds, while Roosevelt Harris filled up the stat sheet. Harris only had four points, but finished with seven steals and 11 assists.

“We’ve been right there. I tell them all the time that it’s about trust. We’ve got to trust each other, and if we do that we’re going to get over it. Tonight we got over it,” Warren Central coach Keith Williams said.

Warren Central (6-17) earned its first win since Jan. 3 and advanced to face Ridgeland in the semifinals Thursday at 8:30 p.m. The region tournament is being played at Neshoba Central.

Warren Central also advanced to the Class 6A state tournament after missing it the past two seasons.

Warren Central lost both regular-season meetings with Ridgeland (24-4), which is the No. 2 seed in the region tournament and ranked No. 3 in Class 6A. Both games were competitive, though, so Williams is hoping his Vikings can duplicate their performance from Tuesday.

Four of Warren Central’s losses during its eight-game slide were by eight points or less.

“It’s playoff time. Anything can happen,” Williams said.

MHSAA Region 2-6A tournament
Boys
Feb. 4
Callaway 67, Vicksburg 40
Warren Central 64, Neshoba Central 61
Feb. 6
Callaway vs. Columbus, 5:30 p.m.
Warren Central vs. Ridgeland, 8:30 p.m.
Feb. 7
Third-place game, 5:30 p.m.
Championship game, 8:30 p.m.
Note: Top four teams advance to Class 6A state tournament