When you were growing up, how many times did you get lectured about doing things “the hard way” or the “easy way” by your parents?

Probably 10,000 times and that’s an optimistic sum.

Vicksburg’s basketball team is taking the hard road to Jackson and the Big House and maybe, just maybe, they’ll be a better team because of it.

Before the Gators (25-3) were upset by Greenville-Weston in the 4-6A championship game, they were cruising like few teams had done before. The Gators had a pair of signature, crunch-time wins over Brandon. They dismantled the rest with a din of dunks, blocks, steals and jumpers.

Steve Wilson is the sports editor of the Vicksburg Post. You can reach him at swilson@vicksburgpost.com or at 601-636-4545, ext.142.

They seemed invincible.

But against Greenville-Weston in its packed bandbox of a gym, the Gators faltered and were forced to settle for a road game in the satellite round.

No matter. The Gators got 36 points from Kelsey Howard, who steered the ship when the other half of Vicksburg’s dynamic duo, Mychal Ammmons, was consigned to the bench in foul trouble. They beat Olive Branch 73-63 and moved on to face Starkville.

The key for Vicksburg is defense. Gator coach Dellie C. Robinson is not a 2-3 zone guy or a man-on-man guy or a 3-2 guy. He’s not wedded to any particular defense, as evidenced by last year’s run.

No matter what defense the Gators use, the key to returning to the Big House rests on their ability to lock down opponents and sow seeds of frustration. They are yielding just a shade over 54 points with 8.7 steals and 2.9 blocks per contest.

Offensively, the Gators are not just Howard (19.8 points per game) and Ammons (19.3 ppg). While the pair is among the top 10 players in the state, the key for Vicksburg’s offensive dominance (68.6 points per game) is the Gators’ never-ending arsenal of role players who can score in bunches when required. Dominique Brown, Chris Miller, Kienta Ross, Roosevelt Harris and Kevin Brown all average four points per contest or better and nearly all of them have at least a few double-figure games this season. Dominique Brown’s play in particular as the Gators’ table-setter (55 assists) has played a key role in their season-long ascent.

But as Alabama coach Nick Saban was so fond of saying during the Tide’s recent title run, the higher a team goes up the championship mountain, the farther and more painful is the fall.

The air really does get rarer from here. Starkville (23-2) is easily the mirror image of the Gators. They have a pair of players, Rashad Perkins and Edward Townsel, who are among the state’s top 20 scorers. They put the clamps on the opposition, allowing just 51 points per contest. They can hang big numbers on the scoreboard like the Gators, averaging nearly 73 points per game.

So when the going gets tough, do the tough get going? Will Vicksburg rise to the challenge Friday?

If they do, there’s a pretty good chance the Gators will add a new banner to the rafters in their gym.