JONESVILLE, La. &045; This time it really hasn’t been easy following the loss of two key players, but the Block Lady Bears surprised some people when they wound up where they were last year.

After finishing co-champs in District 4-1A with Delhi, the Lady Bears lost the tie-breaker game to go into the playoffs as the No. 2 team and will face Mangham at 6 p.m. tonight.

It’s been a season of transition following the losses of scorers Dani McMillin and Catessa Branch from a year ago, but the Lady Bears regrouped and got it together.

&uot;I think my girls are looking better,&uot; said Block head coach Veronica Savage, whose team came a game away from making the Sweet 16 last year. &uot;It’s taken a while. I’m working with babies. We’ll come out right if we play as a team. We may not score high, but we’ll get in there and fight. Losing them, I had to readjust my offense. We’re not real big, but we’re working hard.&uot;

It’s been a season of growing for the Lady Bears, who finished district with a 6-2 record thanks to a strong finish. The 69-60 loss against Delhi came on Monday at Winnsboro was the biggest hurdle young team could not overcome, but Savage said her club was ready and &uot;came to play ball.&uot;

Delhi goes into the playoffs as the No. 1 seed and will play Cotton Valley, the third-place finisher in District 1. Davidson and Newellton also got in as wild cards.

But at least Savage and her club know what they’re up against today against Mangham. The two teams split its two games during the regular season with each team winning at home &045; Block by one point in Jonesville and the Lady Dragons by 12 in Mangham.

The Lady Dragons could present matchup problems in the post, but it may be nothing the Lady Bears haven’t seen.

&uot;It should be interesting,&uot; Savage said. &uot;Most teams we play &045; we use our speed. We’re small, so we have to work harder mostly. They’re a good group of kids. Most times with us, it’s height. The game should be interesting.&uot;