[12/05/02]Warren Central and Vicksburg High will get a chance to show that their great starts are no fluke this weekend when Jim Hill and South Pike roll into town for the Warren Central Classic.

Both WC and VHS enter the tournament with 7-1 records that include wins over several solid teams. Jim Hill, meanwhile, is undefeated at 7-0, and South Pike is 1-5 but sports an up-tempo style that could give the Vikings and Gators fits.

VHS will face South Pike in the first boys’ game Friday at 5:30 p.m., and WC will face Jim Hill at 8:30.

“There are no cupcakes. It’s going to be a tough tournament,” WC coach Preston Wilson said. “(Jim Hill is) athletic. We match up in certain spots with them, and hopefully we can limit our turnovers and make better decisions with the basketball.”

For VHS, the challenge will be to deal with South Pike’s athleticism. The Eagles scored 85 points in a loss to Wilkinson County on Tuesday, and VHS coach Dellie Robinson said South Pike gets better with each game.

“Their record may not indicate how good they are. They have a lot of football players that are just now getting back,” Robinson said. “South Pike is a quick team, they’re very aggressive, they shoot the ball real well and they run the floor real well … It’s going to be a dogfight between all four of these teams.”

On the girls’ side, unbeaten South Pike appears to be the class of the field coming in, but WC (5-3) and VHS (4-4) will make some noise. A weak Jim Hill team rounds out the field.

South Pike finished 32-3 last season and enters the tournament with a perfect 7-0 record. VHS draws the Lady Eagles first, at 4 p.m. Friday. WC will face Jim Hill at 7 p.m.

“They like to trap a lot, so we’ll be working on that in practice this week. We’ll throw about seven out there on five in the next few days and see if we can beat it,” VHS coach Mike Coleman said. “If we play up to our level, we feel like we can play with them. We can play with most anybody if we play up to our level.”

WC and VHS played for both the boys’ and girls’ championships at the WC Classic last year, with the Lady Vikes and Gators winning. None of the coaches were itching for a rematch this time around, with as many as four more meetings between the teams still a possibility.

WC and VHS already played in the Coca-Cola Classic in November, and there are still two regular-season meetings scheduled. There is also the possibility of a matchup in the Division 3-5A tournament in February and a game somewhere along the way in the state tournament, if both schools can advance that far.

“If it’s Vicksburg, we’re looking at Round 2 … I don’t like playing them that much. It’s good for our kids because it’s a rivalry game and they get up for it, but I’d rather not play them that much,” WC girls coach Donny Fuller said.