George County Boys continue to surprise in 6A

No. 1 seeds largely ruled the week in region tournaments across the Coast.

While it's no stunning development that the top seeds won region titles, it was a little surprising how predictable the tournaments proved to be. For the most part, there wasn't much drama involved.

Possibly the most surprising development of the week is that a St. Martin boys team that entered the 7-6A tournament with plenty of momentum as the No. 2 seed didn't find a way to take the tournament title at D'Iberville.

Instead, it was one of this year's biggest surprises, George County, that took down the Yellow Jackets, 64-58.

The same two teams played on Jan. 22 at St. Martin and the Yellow Jackets won, 80-57. George County won the first meeting, 68-56, in Lucedale.

The Rebels, who earn a first-round bye with the win, have flown under the radar for much of the season, partly because they took three weeks off headed into the new year. They are now 16-6 and Region 7-6A champions for 2015-16.

Head coach Ron Renfroe has done an outstanding job with his George County team and he has plenty of talent on the court. Junior guard LaRaymond Spivery has quietly had one of the best seasons in South Mississippi, averaging 19.1 points, 4.3 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 3.2 steals this season.

Spivery is far from the lone standout for George County. Junior guard Tyrese Fryfogle, who is a star on the football team like Spivery, is a sweet shooting guard. The Rebels also get nice production out of a pair of senior forwards, Rashad Wiggins and Randy Leverette.

George County showed major improvement throughout the season. The best proof of that progress was a 61-58 win over Biloxi on Feb. 2 after losing 88-51 at Biloxi on Dec. 8.

The Gulfport boys weren't always perfect this season, but they followed through with a 58-42 win over rival Biloxi to claim the 8-6A title Friday night. As long as the Admirals can get consistent offense, they can make a run to Jackson.

The Pascagoula boys (23-4) again backed up their Sun Herald No. 1 ranking by thumping West Harrison, 49-32, for the Region 8-5A championship Friday night. The Panthers may not have one obvious go-to man, but they have plenty of players capable of stepping up at any moment.

On the girls side, West Harrison, St. Martin, Harrison Central and Bay High all cruised to region championships.

The Harrison Central girls (19-9) struggled to beat Hancock, 33-31, in the tournament opener, but proved impressive in a 70-35 win over Gulfport in the championship game.

The Red Rebelettes have lagged behind West Harrison and St. Martin in the Sun Herald Top 10 all season, but they are always a threat to make a run in the state tournament.

Thanks to last year's expansion of the state tournament, most of the Coast squads will compete this week in the postseason.

While there were no major surprises in the region tournaments, expect plenty of drama early in the state tournament..

The real contenders will come to light over the next week.

This story was originally published February 20, 2016 at 12:51 PM with the headline "George County Boys continue to surprise in 6A ."