[2/6/04]Saturday’s basketball game between Warren Central and Vicksburg means little in the divisional standings.

Thanks to the MHSAA’s system of point differentials and head-to-head games, Forest Hill (12-10, 4-2) has clinched the top seed in the Division 6-5A Tournament, even if WC beats Vicksburg and ties for first place. Natchez also is set in the fourth spot.

The only difference this final division game means for the Gators (12-13, 2-3) and the Vikings (10-13, 3-2) is which team will wear the home jerseys when they face off at the tournament.

But Vicksburg still hopes to finish out the regular season with a winning record. To do so, they will need to win out their final three games against WC, Port Gibson and Brandon.

“We’re on a winning streak and we certainly want to stay that way,” VHS coach Dellie Robinson said. “We’re looking forward to having a winning season, and that victory on Saturday would mean a lot to us.”

The season has been up and down for the defending state champs. They won four of their first five games this season, before falling into a mid-season slump in which they dropped 12 of 15.

The Gators now are riding a five-game winning streak into Saturday that began with a 59-55 victory over the Vikings on Jan. 24.

Robinson said the recent improved play coincided with the return of Alfred Patton and Fred Thomas.

“Fred Thomas is beginning to handle the basketball a lot more and making better decisions than the kids we had in front of him,” Robinson said. “Alfred came back and gave us a boost in rebounding. That was two big things we were missing.”

The Vikings have had their struggles and successes as well.

Warren Central lost eight of its first nine games, playing against tough competition while adjusting to the return of several football players to the team.

Coincidentally, it was a 72-65 win over Vicksburg on Dec. 5 that pulled things together. Since then, the Vikings have gone 8-5 but are still a very hot-and-cold team.

Many of their losses this season have been close. Six of their 13 losses have been by four points or fewer.

“We’re just up and down,” WC coach Jesse Johnson said. “We haven’t gotten the consistency I’d like to see at this point.”

Johnson still feels the team is playing much better in its last few games because of the emergence of Seddrick Williams as a leader.

“He has really stepped up his game from about the middle of the season,” Johnson said. “He has really matured. He goes out in practice and tells these guys what to do.”

Despite the game’s relative insignificance, it means a lot to the players in this crosstown conflict.

“It’s our rival and we want this game,” Vicksburg’s Sedrick Williams said. “It’s at their home. We haven’t been doing good at their house against them, so we need it.”

Ditto for the girls’ game.

“If Warren Central and Vicksburg are playing in tiddlywinks it’s not meaningless,” WC girls coach Donny Fuller said. “Anytime the two of us play, it’s a big ballgame. It doesn’t matter what the records are. It doesn’t matter what the standings are.”

Heading into the game, the girls’ division standings are set in stone.

The Lady Vikes (17-7, 4-1) wrapped up the top seed in Tuesday’s 55-41 win over Forest Hill and will face Natchez in the division tournament. The Missy Gators (15-11, 2-3) will enter as the third seed against the Lady Rebels (11-11, 3-3).

Both teams enter the game in good shape.

The Lady Vikes are on a four-game winning streak and have won 13 of their last 16 games since the beginning of December.

“We’re playing pretty good basketball,” Fuller said. “We’ve been on a good little roll here.”

The Missy Gators come in as winners of three of their last five games. But with a one-point loss to Crystal Springs and a 68-64 overtime loss to WC, it could easily be a five-game winning streak.

Vicksburg also received a lift when it discovered that Tiffany Hubbard injured on the final play of the Crystal Springs loss on Jan. 31 is feeling no ill effects from her bruised tailbone.

If WC’s overtime win at Vicksburg on Jan. 24 is any indication, Saturday’s game should be another hard-fought battle.

“It’s important because the last time we played I believe that was our game because we did everything right, but our shots just weren’t falling,” Hubbard said. “It’ll be a big win for us to go over there to their house and beat them.”