NATCHEZ &8212; Call it a rebuilding year, a down year or whatever you like.

Yet when Brookhaven Academy held Tensas scoreless for an 11-minute stretch in the second half, BA head coach Barry Gray realized one thing about this season.

Things may be all right after all.

This is with five new starters on the floor from last year&8217;s squad with what would have been the only starter back in Emily Langley on crutches with an ACL injury. The Lady Cougars tied it up late before coming up short 33-29 in the final game of the opening night at the ACCS Girls&8217; Tip-Off Classic.

&8220;We&8217;ve got a new team,&8221; Gray said of his club that featured one senior, three sophomores and a junior in the starting lineup. &8220;I didn&8217;t know what to expect playing the fourth-ranked Class A team. Finally, the sophomores started getting more aggressive in the second half. Defensively, we really grew up in the second half.&8221;

The Lady Cougars went with a 1-3-1 before going to a diamond-and-one defense later in the game. Everything worked, and the Lady Chiefs couldn&8217;t put it in the basket from early in the third quarter to late in the fourth. By then Brookhaven had tied it up at 29-29 when Maddie Allen buried a 3-pointer from the corner.

Once the Lady Chiefs got a bucket from Tabitha Howard at the 2:38 mark when she got it under the basket, it broke the momentum a little bit. From there, the Lady Chiefs knew getting a shot off would be hard.

So they basically held it for the final two minutes to preserve the win. On Brookhaven&8217;s only possession after that, Kellie Brady and Howard both came up with the ball for a jump ball, and had the arrow.

Whitney Alford hit two free throws with two seconds left to seal it.

&8220;Basically in the second half, we got tired,&8221; Tensas head coach Chuck Bauerle said. &8220;I imagined we could go 2 1/2 or three quarters, but basically we went two quarters at least. They sat back in their zone, and we couldn&8217;t make a shot. But it&8217;s a win, and that&8217;s what counts. We&8217;ve got to learn to be a little more patient at times.&8221;

The Lady Cougars struggled offensively for three quarters against the Tensas Academy&8217;s man-to-man defense, but at the start of the fourth they got some points off turnovers to close the gap.

When the Lady Chiefs got one of two free throws from Alford at the 6:20 mark &8212; the start of the drought &8212; before BA&8217;s Hannah Watts was responsible for the only score for the remainder of the third quarter to put the Tensas lead at 29-17 heading into the fourth.

Watts then put in a layup off a fast break to start the fourth quarter and ignite a 12-0 run. Betsy Lynch tossed in three straight buckets &8212; including one off a steal in front of the Tensas bench &8212; before Allen&8217;s triple from the corner tied it up at the 3:00 mark.

&8220;We ran a little diamond-and-one on (Aubrey McEacharn),&8221; Gray said. &8220;I think Chuck does a good job with his team in everybody can shoot a little bit. I really think this is the year Tensas has a chance of making the state championship game. They&8217;re not missing the parts.&8221;

The Lady Chiefs had better success in the first half when they built up a lead and got the ball inside underneath that zone. They took a 15-7 lead after one and opened the second quarter with a 3-pointer from Aubrey McEacharn.

&8220;We&8217;ve got to hit our outside shots,&8221; Bauerle said. &8220;I thought we were tired and hitting the front of the rim with our shots.&8221;

Centreville 49, Amite SC 37

Centreville&8217;s 14-3 lead at the end of the first quarter provided cushion it needed to roll.

Brittany Boatner led Centreville with 19 points.