Vicksburg Junior High Gators ranked No. 1 after defeating Clinton

The Vicksburg Junior High eighth grade boys defeated the Clinton Arrows last night in a heated battle that got the Gators head coach ejected from the game.

Both teams were undefeated before the game, and the Clinton crowd was hostile, rooting for coach Jerdon Hardiman to get tossed out.

The Gators came out shining in the first quarter preventing the Arrows from scoring at all until the end of the quarter, when Vicksburg led 13-4.

By the middle of the second quarter, Clinton began to put some more numbers on the scoreboard, getting into the game. Vicksburg did not stop their offensive drive, and put up 14 points in the second quarter to lead 27-21 at halftime.

As the second half began, the crowd got even noisier as the score got closer.

Kealon Bass knocked down a big three pointer for the Gators, but the whistle would continue to blow with foul calls on both teams, which frustrated Vicksburg coach Hardiman. By this point, the Gators had held the lead from the beginning and finished the third quarter with a 35-33 lead.

The fourth quarter is when the game would be at its wildest.

The Arrows took a 43-41 lead, but the Gators scored again once they got possession of the ball. Clinton refused to put the correct score on the board which heated Hardiman. After protesting the score, Hardiman was ejected from the game after two technical fouls. As he was escorted out, the correct score went up when Clinton realized they made a mistake.

Assistant coach DeAndre King said that Hardiman did “what he thought was right by standing up.”

King took over, and the Gators seemed to lose confidence letting Clinton take a six point lead, but the Gators didn’t let that stand too long.

“The boys responded well and fought great.” King said. “Player Davian Williams told me that they had my back, and it felt good to step up and be a leader.“

In the final two minutes—just as some fans thought the game was over and began to leave, thinking Clinton would win—the Gators got their confidence back and began to score back-to-back points.

Gators center Tyler Carter scored two lay ups in the final 30 seconds to secure a 52-50 Gator win.

The Gators (9-0) are now ranked No. 1 after the victory.

“I always taught them to play like champions,” Hardiman said, “and they stuck it out and did just that.”