Despite cruising to a 68-29 victory over Block, Ferriday High School girls basketball coach Lisa Abron said her team looked nothing like it should have Thursday night in the Sicily Island Tournament.

The Lady Trojans (11-3) used its lively half-court defense to tip balls and capitalize on easy points under the basket but otherwise played with little enthusiasm, Abron said.

“During the holidays, they have a lot of time off. They eat a lot and sleep a lot, so I expected them to be sluggish but not this sluggish,” she said. “I thought once the first quarter ended we would pick it up, but it looked to me like they were just all out of sync.”

Block (9-10) looked strong at the start, leading to a 5-5 tie midway through the first period, but three quick breakways allowed Ferriday to take the lead — one it would maintain for the remainder of the game.

Block then struggled to handle the ball throughout the night, only giving the Lady Trojans more chances at stealing loose balls.

Lady Bears coach Veronica Savage credited the sloppy play to a lack of poise.

“We have three starters out,” she said. “We could have run with Ferriday, but my kids just didn’t have the confidence. The one thing you can’t teach is heart.

“It’s about self esteem. When one person is out, the next person has to step up.”

Block didn’t score a basket in the second quarter until Kaytlyn Williams sank a 3-pointer with 3:05 remaining in the period, and the missed shots continued into the second half as it the Lady Bears scored just three points in the third quarter.

Williams and MaKayla Mackey led the efforts for Block with eight points apiece.

“We had speed in our corner, but they had it made up in their minds that we weren’t supposed to beat Ferriday,” Savage said. “They are an (LHSAA Class) 2A school. It’s hard to get past the fact they we are just 1A.”

Moving forward, Savage said she isn’t worried about how her team will bounce back — hoping to make a deep run in the playoffs this season.

“We are going,” she said. “This has nothing to do with our chances. I know what my kids are capable of doing.”

Abron added her team could learn a great deal about the rest of the season from Thursday night.

Zhane Green led the Lady Trojans with 19 points, while Anasia Turner added 16 and Diamond Johnson had 12.

“We have to turn it around if we are going to make a run this year,” Abron said. “We need to take every game for what it is. We have to put our stamp on everything we do, and tonight we didn’t do that.”

Both teams are set to continue playing in the Sicily Island Tournament. Ferriday will play again at 3:40 p.m. today against Franklin Parish, while Block picks up again at 2:20 p.m. Saturday when it plays Vidalia.