After watching No. 4 seed Jim Hill upset Jackson Provine 57-53, the Natchez High Bulldogs pulled off an upset of their own as the No. 3 seed eliminated Forest Hill 77-57 to advance to the Division 6-5A finals Friday at Natchez.

&uot;Provine losing really didn’t get us any more motivated because we wanted to play them again,&uot;&160;said Natchez center Carl Minor. &uot;But we knew we had to be focused.&uot;

The contest started out rather sluggish as the Bulldogs led 13-6 after one period of play.

Natchez forced five turnovers in the quarter.

&uot;Our defense was excellent,&uot; said Natchez senior Jovon Edwards. &uot;We played half court pressure. It worked the first half, so we just stayed with it in the second half.&uot;

Vasshun Newborne had four of the Bulldogs’ 13 points.

Two 3-pointers by Jamal Bouldin and a basket and three-point play by Derek Jarvis increased Natchez’s lead to 24-10 early in the second period.

&uot;I hit my first two threes and felt like I could hit it all night,&uot; Bouldin said. &uot;They told me to keep shooting.&uot;

Edwards then scored two baskets to put the Bulldogs up 28-13.

A basket by Minor increased the Natchez lead to 30-15.

Forest Hill cut the Natchez lead to 32-23 at halftime.

Two baskets by Minor and another 3-pointer from Bouldin helped the Bulldogs improve their lead to 45-25 in the third quarter.

Newborne added two baskets as Natchez went up 53-33.

&uot;All we talked about was blocking out and getting the rebound,&uot; Newborne said.

A rebound basket by Demetries Minor with five seconds to play in the third quarter gave Natchez a 55-33 advantage going into the final period.

The Bulldogs, 22-8, never let the Rebels back in the contest in the final period.

Bouldin led Natchez with 20 points. David Haywood, who struggled from the outside, finished with 13.

&uot;My shot wasn’t working, so I knew I had to go inside,&uot; Haywood said.

&uot;When David struggles, the whole team has to do better because he carries us,&uot; Bouldin said. &uot;He makes up play better.&uot;

Edwards and Newborne added 12 points each.

Natchez will face Jim Hill Friday at 7:30 p.m. at Natchez High.

Jim Hill was led by Mario Jointer with 18 points, including four 3-pointers.

Harold Martin added 16.

Justin Reed led Provine with 20.

The winner of tonight’s game will host a first round South State contest Tuesday. The loser goes on the road.