FERRIDAY — Ferriday High School will have to run the gauntlet for a shot at the LHSAA Class 2A state title.

The Trojans are on the same side of the bracket as the No. 1, No. 4 and No. 5 seeds in the tournament, but the Trojans’ first test is a home game against Runnels School Friday.

“Being ranked No. 12 in the state in 2A, that means that we are supposed to be a fairly decent team,” coach K.G. Watkins said. “I like where we are because in order to play at Lake Charles (in the championship), you have to play the best.”

Watkins said he has a young team. With just one senior, Watkins relies on his freshman and sophomore classes to pick up the majority of the minutes on the court.

Watkins said a young team comes with its strengths and weaknesses. The lack of experience is a detractor in postseason, but Watkins said his players aren’t afraid of the teams the Trojans will match up against.

“It’s good because they’ve never been in this situation so they aren’t afraid of it, but at the same time they don’t have much experience,” Watkins said.

Sophomore Dantrieze Scott said that fearlessness outweighs the weakness of a young team.

“I feel good about this now,” Scott said. “We ain’t scared. We aren’t going to be scared of anybody.”

One of Watkins’ concerns with his young team is the time off between the regular season and playoffs.

“We’ve had a two-week lag period where we haven’t actually had any competition,” Watkins said. “Keeping everybody excited is the hardest part. We played a scrimmage game last Friday, which we didn’t do well, but it was a good thing too because it destroyed that (mantra) that we were better than we actually were.”

Ferriday finished the season with an overall record of 18-7. An 8-2 record in District 2-2A granted the Trojans second place behind the tournament No. 6 seed and district champion Rayville High School.

Watkins said the last two days of practice are about making sure the team is fundamentally sharp.

“It’s about trying to iron out any problems we knew we had at the end of the season,” Watkins said. “Trying to improve the basic fundamentals like free throws. Things that could actually play a big part in the game in the last quarter.”

Watkins said Runnels plays a sound game. The Raiders stick to zone defenses and try to control the pace of the game on offense. This is why Watkins has turned his focus to the fine details in the days before Ferriday’s playoff game.

“We’re going to play fundamentally and set up our offense,” Watkins said. “We’re not going to try to run up and down the floor. We take fast breaks when we get them, but we want to run a really strong offense and defense. Right now our best asset is our defense.”

Scott, listed at 6-foot-6, is a key part of the Trojan interior defense. The sophomore said it seems like his team is peaking at the right time, and his rebounding effort will be a key to beating Runnels.

“We dominate on the boards,” Scott said. “I’m ready for Friday.”

The tipoff is set for 7 p.m. at the Ferriday Junior High School gymnasium.