NATCHEZ — One day after falling short on a comeback bid against Terry High School, Natchez High School was determined to finish Saturday night.

And after trailing by 18 points at the half, the Bulldogs took advantage of a cold Jefferson County High School team, storming back late before winning 56-54 in the final minute of play.

It was NHS’s Ryan Lewis who played the role of the last-second hero. After the Bulldogs’ Michael Watts hit two free throws with 20 seconds left to tie the game, Lewis intercepted a pass on the ensuing Jefferson County possession, dribbled down the court and went up for a shot.

Lewis was fouled, and hit both foul shots, giving the Bulldogs the edge. Despite a last-second attempt by the Tigers, the Bulldog defense stood strong, securing the comeback win in front of an electrifying home crowd.

“I’m feeling good,” NHS assistant coach David Haywood said. “I’m just happy for the guys. They stood up to my challenge at halftime.

“I told them, in front of your home fans, your friends and your family, (our) first-half showing, that’s unacceptable. Natchez basketball, we never lay down, win, lose or draw. We’re supposed to fight until the end, and I’m just happy for the guys, because they did that.”

Tigers head coach Marcus Walton said he was proud that his team didn’t give up, even after losing an 18-point advantage in the second half.

“It was a great game, great atmosphere,” Walton said. “It was a tale of two halves. Natchez did a great job of coming back in the second half and not giving up. My hat goes off to them.

“Every game is a learning game for us right now. We’re young. We’re building. Natchez beat us by 33, convincingly, at home in Fayette. For us to come down and have an 18-point lead at the half, with an opportunity to win at the end, was great for my kids.”

The Bulldogs (8-9) came out strong to start the first quarter, jumping out to a 9-0 lead, but Jefferson County (6-9) stormed back to make it 17-12 NHS after one.

In the second quarter, the Bulldogs became ice cold on offense, and the Tigers exploded by scoring 30 points en route to a 42-24 halftime lead. But after a strong second period, the Tigers couldn’t bucket in the third as the Bulldogs slowly chipped away at Jefferson County’s lead.

“We came a little unraveled in the third quarter,” Walton said. “Natchez High jumped into a 1-3-1 (zone defense), and we acted like we hadn’t seen it before. You’re going to have those kind of nights when you’re dealing with a young group like we have.”

The Tigers managed just two points in the third to NHS’s 12, and led 44-36 at the end of three.

Despite a couple of three-pointers by Christopher Tyler and Dalvin Johnson in the fourth, Jefferson County continued to struggle on offense in the final period. NHS took a 45-44 lead with 5:30 to play on a field goal by Gary Woods.

From there, it was back and forth between the two before the Bulldogs took the lead for good on Lewis’ free throws with nine seconds left.

Lewis led the Bulldogs with 13 points, and DeArius Griffin scored 10 points. Dalvin Johnson had 12 points for Jefferson County, and Jarmell Anderson and Ja’Darius Harried both scored 10 for the Tigers.

Natchez High girls 66, Jefferson County 44

Keyana Miller had 17 points for the Lady Bulldogs in a convincing win against Jefferson County.

Ashley Minor added 16 points for NHS, and Kiara Johnson tallied 11 points. Jefferson County was led by Haley Turner, who scored 16 points.

NHS will host Jess Lanier Tuesday. Jefferson County will host Wilkinson County Friday.