NATCHEZ &045; First-year Adams Christian head coach Kyle Smith has learned plenty in his first two months in MPSA basketball.

He’s picked up quickly on who’s good in the district and who’s average. He’s starting to find out the strengths and weaknesses of his own players. And most of all he’s learned that a 0-3 start in District 3-AA is not grounds for pushing the panic button.

His goal for the Rebels is simple &045; play as late in February as possible.

So after they lost at Copiah Friday, the Rebels are off until the start of next week when the second half of the season officially begins at the WCCA New Year’s Shootout.

&uot;This is good for us to get a good break,&uot; said Smith, who spent over a dozen seasons as an assistant at Vanguard High School in Waco, Texas. &uot;We’re 0-3 in district, but the good thing we do have a district tournament. I think our goal is achievable. I still think we’re a good basketball team. Our record doesn’t really show it.

&uot;I don’t know if it’s because of me or the team &045; in my opinion, I’ve made a few bad mistakes and the team has made a few bad mistakes.&uot;

The loss Friday night at Copiah Academy may not have been anything that can be necessarily deemed a bad mistake, although the Rebels had a chance to win a contest Copiah came away a 51-50 winnner.

The Colonels had the one-point lead with 18 seconds left before the Rebels had a turnover on their end. They had to foul to stop the clock, and Copiah missed the front end of a one-and-one to keep the lead at one.

Then Clay Floyd missed a shot from the outside, and Casey Gould tried to put it back in and did so &045; just after the buzzer sounded.

&uot;I really thought it went in (before), but the referee said it didn’t,&uot; Smith said. &uot;But we fought back. We got down, but we fought back and made a game of it. At the end it was pretty much anybody’s to win.&uot;

Yet the contest showed signs of improvement for the Rebels, who had 25 points from guard Dustin Case. The Rebels trailed in that game 20-12 by the end of the first quarter but had a solid night from a different player in the scoring department.

In an overtime win over Canton the night prior, Timmy Foster poured in 33 points.

&uot;We’re doing OK,&uot; Smith said. &uot;Each night we have somebody different as our leading scorer. I don’t think we’re relying on one person to do all of our scoring. We’re starting to cut down on our turnovers. I’m upset because we turn the ball over a lot. I think we’re trying to ad-lib a lot and not trying to follow the game plan.&uot;

Turnovers have been the biggest problem since the beginning of the season, and it served to be their undoing in the first loss to Trinity and the loss two weeks ago at Tensas Academy.

&uot;We’re getting too deep into the lane and over-passing,&uot; Smith said. &uot;That’s one thing &045; we’re over-passing instead of taking the shot. I think a lot of them are mental turnovers &045; not things we’re forced into. We don’t have a lot of steals against us. A lot of our turnovers are coming off bad passes.&uot;

The Rebels will get into action next week against Centreville and Bowling Green at the WCCA Shootout before meeting up with Huntington and Parklane and returning to district Jan. 8 at Prairie View.

Right now Central Hinds is sitting atop the district after handing Chamberlain-Hunt its only loss of the season. The Rebels will host CHA Jan. 10.

&uot;I think the second half is going to be a lot better,&uot; Smith said. &uot;I think (our inside game) is almost where we want it to be. We’ll come back and start practicing and get ready for the (WCCA) Shootout. We play two or three district games each week. I think our kids are looking forward to it.&uot;

Adams Christian girls

The Lady Rebels are trying to stay sharp over the holiday break &045; with practices Monday and Tuesday and three practices next week before the WCCA Shootout.

The Lady Rebels (2-1, 11-3) suffered their first loss in 3-AA Friday night at Copiah as well.

&uot;We got into foul trouble with a couple of them and had to sit down most of the game,&uot; head coach John Gray said. &uot;We’re trying to stay in fair condition. We’re trying to keep them in shape.&uot;

The loss was a defensive struggle against a Copiah team that lost a number of seniors off last year’s roster. The Lady Colonels (3-1, 8-14) claimed a 28-25 win in Gallman to sit among the leaders in district.

Right now Gray just wants to keep the momentum going. The Lady Rebels will face Centreville and Bowling Green at the WCCA Shootout next week.

&uot;I’m really pleased with the progress we’re making,&uot; Gray said. &uot;But we’re still making bad decisions at the wrong times. What’s good about the girls is they work so hard and they’ve got a good attitude.&uot;