Gulfport girls push past adversity, lock in on playoffs. ‘This group is pretty resilient.’
Region play can be a roller coaster for South Mississippi basketball teams jockeying for position ahead of district and state tournaments.
The Gulfport girls know the ups and downs well after a tumultuous regular season. The Admirals enjoyed a 10-3 start that included a perfect 7-0 record against Coast opponents. Since then, Gulfport has won six and lost four around multiple canceled and rescheduled games.
“This group is pretty resilient,” Gulfport head coach Brooke Glass told the Sun Herald. “We’ve talked a lot about adversity. How adversity can help you grow as a person, as a player, as an individual, as a team. And we’ve faced a good deal of adversity this season.”
Gulfport has dealt with injuries and schedule changes throughout the year. The Admirals have searched for consistency since region play started, but have struggled to find it.
Glass’ team swept Biloxi in the regular season, and took the Indians down again in the first round of the district tournament. Gulfport came close to the powerful Harrison Central team in their first matchup, a 61-53 Red Rebel win, but were tossed aside in the rematch by a 43-point margin.
“It’s been a different year,” Glass said. “We’ve had a lot of injuries, a lot of COVID. With people being out and in so our lineup is constantly changing. I’ve been out for several games so we’ve had different people step in and coach. (The team) has done a really good job of staying together, staying on track and buying into the expectations.”
Gulfport’s catalysts
Leading the charge on the court is talented senior Simaru Fields. The reigning Sun Herald girls’ basketball player of the year is having another strong year as the Admirals’ go-to scoring point guard, averaging 16 points per game.
“She’s instant offense,” Glass said. “She comes in with the mindset of taking over and running the show.”
Gulfport’s opponents are game planning around Fields, playing more ball-denial defense against the star. As a result, others are beginning to step up around her and help contribute to the scoreboard.
Twins Madison and Micah O’Dell have stepped up in key moments. The two are putting in 15.6 points per game together.
Seniors Jada Hall and Aniyah Martin have also stepped up, with the latter scoring about 7 points a contest. Glass says the byproduct of defenders focusing on Fields has been an increase in confidence from the rest of the team.
Fields believes it will take the entire team locking in to find consistency and make an impact in the state playoffs.
“We all have to buy into what coach is saying,” Fields said. “Sometimes it’s just two players, sometimes it’s just three players. We all have to buy into what (Glass) is saying. We all have to hustle. We all have to trust one another.”
Fields began her high school career at West Harrison, but is finishing it with Admirals. She has two guaranteed games left at Gulfport; one of them is the district title game on Friday night against Harrison Central.
As she stares down her final games in the Blue and Orange, Fields says the move to Gulfport has only benefited her as an athlete and as a person.
“Our chemistry here, we all fight for each other,” Fields said. “It helped with me life itself because basketball is more than just a game.”
Fields and the Admirals have just one guaranteed game left. Gulfport plays Ocean Springs in the first round of the state tournament on Monday.
