FAYETTE &045; For the first three minutes of Franklin County’s win over Amite County, it seemed the Lady Bulldogs couldn’t miss and the Lady Trojans couldn’t even get the ball past halfcourt.

When Franklin County’s Shalenia Wilcher scored with 4:53 left to go in the first quarter, she made the score 18-0 in favor of Franklin County and one could feel the game was probably already over.

Franklin County had forced numerous turnovers and taken advantage with some fast-break buckets, and a few seconds later Lady Bulldogs head coach Charles Moore took all his starters out, though they would return later.

The Lady Bulldogs (20-6) went on to take an 85-34 win over Amite County (2-20) Tuesday in the first round of the Division 7-3A tournament at Jefferson County High School. Franklin County, the No. 2 seed, will take on the winner of tonight’s game between No. 3 Port Gibson and No. 6 Jefferson County at 7 p.m. Thursday.

&uot;I’m glad to get through the first one,&uot; Moore said.

The Lady Bulldogs first game in the tournament wasn’t even close. They led by as many as 40 points in the first half at 48-8 with 5:18 remaining in the second quarter and never led by fewer than 34 points in the second half.

But, Moore said, it gave the team some time to work on their individual skills and their teamwork.

What did the Lady Bulldogs do well in the game?

&uot;Pretty much everything,&uot; Franklin County’s Victoria Hunt said.

Hunt had a fine performance, scoring 16 points in the first three quarters before taking a set for good. The team as a whole played well, with 12 Lady Bulldogs scoring in the game. Shalenia Wilcher had 13 and Shareka Hunt added 12 for Franklin County. Amite County’s Tiffany Pearly led all scorers with 19 points.

Amite County just tried to keep playing hard, coach Shaune Handy said.

&uot;You just tell them to do the best you can and try to play tight defense,&uot; Handy said.

Franklin County used its full-court press often in the game, making life difficult for the Lady Trojan ballhandlers.

&uot;Early in the game, we tried to work on our press,&uot; Moore said. &uot;The first group forced a lot of turnovers.&uot;

Victoria Hunt said that press will probably be an important part of what they will try against Port Gibson in the next round.

&uot;We’ll probably press a lot, try to bring a smile to everyone’s face,&uot; Hunt said.

Moore said he did see room for improvement in his team’s performance.

&uot;I didn’t think we did a good job on the boards,&uot; Moore said. &uot;The girls who should have been rebounding didn’t.&uot;

This tournament has the potential to be an exciting one, with the top four teams well matched according to most observers. No. 1 Wilkinson County, Franklin County, Port Gibson and No. 4 seed Hazlehurst all won eight or more games in district play this season.

&uot;I don’t think there is much difference. The top four are tight,&uot; Moore said. &uot;We split with each of the other top three. It’s going to be who plays the best defense and has the fewest turnovers.&uot;

For Amite County, whose season ended with the loss, it’s time to look ahead to next season when things can only get better. After finishing this season without a district win &045; and plenty of blowout losses &045; the Lady Trojans have at least one reason to feel good about the future: none of their key players are graduating this year.

&uot;They’re a young team, with some first-time players. We’ll some back strong,&uot; Handy said. &uot;I have a few big girls who have the momentum and drive to do better and some young guards who want to go to the weight room, want to get better. I just have to give them the skills to do that. But we are coming back strong. I have no doubt about that.&uot;