FERRIDAY, La. &045; To hear Ferriday guard Ladrian Davis put it, it’s not like the Trojans tune head coach James Davis out when he motions for them to come to the sideline.

They just understand how to swallow the pills of assessment Coach passes out through the course of the game and finish with a victory.

With the exception of an early lead, which grew to as large as five, Coach Davis had plenty reasons to sport that intimidating scowl upon his face.

However, all those words, those penetrating stares started rubbing off into desire for Ferriday, as it came back from as many as 12 points at one time to eke out a 61-60 victory over Newellton Tuesday.

&uot;We’ve just learned to take (Coach Davis’) criticism,&uot; said Ladrian Davis, who led the Trojans with 24 points. &uot;He’s gonna chew you out. You’ve got to know what to hear and not to hear.&uot;

Trailing by eight, 55-47, after Bears’ Marcus Hill banked in a layup with 3:34 to play, Ferriday (2-1) stormed back with an 11-0 run in less than two minutes to take its first lead since the second quarter.

LaKenyan Russ drained two three-pointers to key the run, including the first in which he pump faked and got 6-5 Bears’ post Carnel Hill in the air, and proceeded to touch nothing but nylon with an open look in front of him to make it 55-53 Newellton with 2:34 to play.

Russ finished as the only other Trojan to reach double figures with 10 points.

&uot;I got get persistent play out of (Russ). The first half he didn’t play well,&uot; James Davis said. &uot;I’d like for him to get into a flow early. But down the stretch he hit some big shots. We need that every night.&uot;

Ferriday watched its lead grow to four, 61-57, at the 47-second mark when Ladrian Davis drove through traffic to the hoop for a layup.

With Trojan cheerleaders prematurely diving into their victorious &uot;Fire it up&uot; chant, Newellton guard Quentin Jackson hit a trey from the corner pocket with 11 ticks left.

Ferriday’s Chris Cooke was fouled with 6.9 seconds, but missed both free throws. Carnel Hill Windexed the glass and flung an outlet pass, which the Trojans’ Eric Crump knocked out of bounds with three-tenths of a second remaining.

Russ leaped high in the air to steal Jackson’s inbound pass that was headed for an apparent alley oop attempt to seal the win.

&uot;You’ve gotta believe we’re gonna win in those situations,&uot; Ladrian Davis said. &uot;If you believe then it’ll happen.&uot;

With an undersized roster, it is no secret Ferriday might struggle with bigger teams this season. However, despite allowing Carnel Hill 16 points and Newellton’s other 6-4 post Kentrell Darden 20, the Trojans kept the remaining Bears in check, as no other player had more than six.

&uot;In the first half we were giving (Newellton) too many second and third shots,&uot; Coach Davis said. &uot;We can’t afford to do that with our size. I told them at half to play hard and better defensively.&uot;

Ladrian Davis battled foul trouble early in the second quarter with three fouls, and watched from the bench as his team’s five-point lead quickly morphed into a six-point halftime deficit, 30-24, with an 11-0 run from the Bears.

Newellton increased its lead to double figures, 40-30, when Darden followed up a missed shot halfway through the third.

The lead crawled to 12, 49-37, minutes later when Carnell Hill dropped in an awkward leaner.

&uot;I think the kids played all right,&uot; Bears head coach Carl Washington said. &uot;I think we gave it away at the end. That’s just the bounce of the ball.&uot;

FHS girls 57, Newellton 40

Even though Tuesday was just the Lady Trojans’ third game of the season, this was a long time coming.

Ferriday (1-2) had gone winless before Tuesday’s contest that saw Jameca Garrison and Kim Warner pour in 14 points each in a game that was never really in question.

&uot;This is all new to me; I swear it is,&uot; Lady Trojans head coach Lisa Abron. &uot;When Monique (Jones) and Squirrel (LaShawnda Pryor) were here it made my job a lot easier. I’m not saying the skills aren’t there, but we have a lot who are new to the system. We needed a win tonight.&uot;

Ferriday, which lost Jones to Baylor, Pryor to Hinds Community College, and Latasha Cain, is still discovering its legs and working out the kinks with fresh faces.

Despite being a sophomore, Abron expects Garrison, who started as a freshman a year ago on the 32-1 squad, to pick up the slack.

&uot;She’s young. She’s still got a lot to learn,&uot; Abron said of Garrison. &uot;We expect her to be a leader for us, but she hasn’t stepped up to the plate as of yet. She’s got some big shoes to fill. It’s hard for her to understand her role.&uot;