NATCHEZ &045; None of this was planned at all.

You have to believe the man who was ultimately responsible for doing what many coaches in the southern half of the state would be deathly afraid of doing. John Gray wasn’t even supposed to be coaching the Adams Christian Lady Rebels this long, and he found himself taking a young team up against Parklane and Brookhaven Academy on consecutive nights.

That’s how the chips fell, and right now it can’t do anything but help. Parklane took a 46-38 win over Adams Christian Friday, but the Lady Rebels will use that loss and today’s game at Brookhaven to tune up for next week’s District 3-AA tournament.

&uot;It happened that way, hoping we’d get a little better club to show what we need to get better at,&uot; Gray said. &uot;I wasn’t expecting to be this good. I was expecting one to be real good, but we’ve got two good teams at the end. It wasn’t planned that way. I give credit to (Parklane). They’ve got a good basketball team.&uot;

The Lady Pioneers were no slouches and put away the Lady Rebels near the end just as they did in the two teams’ first meeting in McComb. The Lady Rebels (21-5) went cold nearly the entire third quarter but made a game of it in the fourth when they trimmed the lead down to three.

But the game still left the team feeling confident heading into today’s contest and the tournament next week. It’s also a nice workout with the Lady Rebels earning a first-round bye as district champions and their first game not until Friday.

&uot;Our shots weren’t falling, and we fouled too much,&uot; Lady Rebel forward Ariana DeLaSalle said. &uot;They’re a good team. We’re going to be so ready tomorrow. I have confidence in us. I think we’ll give them a run for their money. They’re a real good team, but so are we.&uot;

The Lady Rebels went back to the press in the fourth to get back in the game, but Parklane hit key shots down the stretch to hold on. Brittany Gamberi hit a three-point play with 3:17 in the game that trimmed the lead to 41-38, but Parklane didn’t give up a bucket after that.

Staying in a tight man-to-man defense in the half-court, the Lady Pioneers pulled away with post player Erin Brabham following Gamberi’s play with two free throws and ending with a bucket with nine seconds left.

&uot;We really wanted to work the ball inside to Erin,&uot; Parklane head coach Kim Weaver said. &uot;They matched up well with our guards. I thought Erin did a good job of stepping up when we needed her.&uot;

The Lady Rebels struggled at times with Katie Ann Swinney, the team’s best outside shooter, battling an illness. So they opted to stick with the pressure defense, and it paid off after Parklane held a 35-23 lead heading into the fourth quarter.

DeLaSalle &045; who led her club with 14 points &045; hit a bucket to open the half and followed that with a three-point play at the 5:38 mark to trim the lead to 35-28. Mattie Geoghegan put in two free throws 14 seconds later to trim the lead further.

&uot;Katie Ann has been sick all week, and she didn’t have the energy she normally has,&uot; Gray said. &uot;We had the same trouble we had over there &045; we got in foul trouble. I was real proud we hurt them with the press. We’re still not making good decisions when we’re running the floor with the basketball. Other than that, I’m proud of their effort. They battled a good basketball team.&uot;

Brabham may have finished with a game-high 20 points, but Parklane’s biggest bucket may have came just after Geoghegan’s free throws when Jamie Scalfani nailed a 3-pointer at the 5:06 mark when everyone in the gym was thinking about stopping Brabham.

After Swinney hit one of two free throws, Scalfani converted a three-point play with 4:52 left for a 41-31 lead.

&uot;I thought they did a great job defensively forcing turnovers,&uot; Weaver said. &uot;(Scalfani’s) 3 off the glass, it put us up by eight. That was a big shot for her. It kind of gave us a cushion.&uot;

The Lady Pioneers pulled away at the start of the third after holding a 19-18 lead at half.