FAYETTE &045; You can surely believe Flora McKnight never wanted her point guard Shaterrica Hall to miss any point of the season.

But, to burrow and find the bright light in a tough situation, at least Hall’s knee injury came late in the game that wrapped up the division 7-3A title for Jefferson County (18-5, 11-1 7-3A).

McKnight, going on doctor’s orders, will keep her floor leader out the final two non-division games against Natchez Tuesday and Ferriday Friday.

&uot;Every coach would love to have a Shaterrica Hall on their team, and it’d be a lot easier if she could play,&uot; McKnight said. &uot;But we’re not going to change anything. We’ll continue to play to our strengths. The other team has to stop us.&uot;

McKnight will run her three-guard set, not designating one person to handle point duties specifically.

As far as this week’s showdowns with the Lady Bulldogs and Lady Trojans, Miss-Lou bragging rights are up for grabs if Jefferson County wants them.

&uot;I’m not putting any pressure on my girls. I’m letting them handle that,&uot; McKnight said. &uot;We’ll be ready, though. We respect everybody we play, but we don’t fear them.&uot;

THAT SHRINKING FEELING &045; As if the Ferriday Trojans’ inside game hasn’t been exploited enough, along comes Vidalia to reinforce just what their problem has been of late.

All outside, no inside.

The Trojans weren’t very big to begin the season, but big men William Woodruff and Albert Lee became ineligible due to grades. That left Tyrrence Taylor &045; quarterback in football in his first year of basketball &045; as the lone man with significant height.

Scoring responsibilities fell upon guards Ladrian Davis and LaKendrick Nix, who combined for 44 points in an 86-66 loss to the Vikings Friday.

&uot;Not being able to have that threat inside is just killing us,&uot; Ferriday head coach James Davis said. &uot;Ladrian and LaKendrick are doing the best they can do, but not being able to get something inside is just killing us.

&uot;But I’m thankful for the guys we’ve got. Tyrrence Taylor is doing a tremendous job for being his first year out. But it’s no excuse. Vidalia was the better ball club &045; no doubt about it.&uot;

YAWN, STRETCH &045; Not to discredit the huge win over Jackson Prep, but the ACCS Rebels are looking forward to taking a break this week after struggling over the last week due to a busy schedule.

It all started with the win over Prep &045; arguably the game they had been pointing since the start of the season &045; but the Rebels then struggled down at Central Private Tuesday and had problems putting away Class A WCCA Thursday night.

Now the Rebels have the entire week off until they host Lamar Friday in their final regular season game. After that they compete in the District 2-AAA tournament at Parklane beginning Feb. 10.

&uot;We’ve got a great opportunity to get well,&uot; ACCS head coach Ricky Gray said. &uot;I kind of worried about not playing a game (Tuesday), but it’s coming at the right time. We can rest and get some practice time in. We just looked tired (Thursday). Now it’s time to get our minds prepared for the district tournament. We’ve got to put everything together like we did for the Prep game.&uot;

THEY’RE NOT ANGRY &045; Everyone familiar with girls’ basketball in the MPSA had to raise an eyebrow last week when powerhouse Brookhaven Academy lost its first game of the season, falling to Jackson Academy.

No big deal, though. The Lady Cougars turned that negative into a positive and have played strong through District 4-AA and the remainder of their schedule in their quest to repeat as Class AA champions.

&uot;I think practices have been a whole lot better the last two weeks,&uot; BA head coach Barry Gray said. &uot;I think it helped us focus on the details. We got away from the details, and the little bitty things are important. We’ve got a better understanding of what we can and can’t do.&uot;