NATCHEZ &045; Let this be an indication of how this series will be in every sport for years to come.

It may never get old.

The newness of the Adams Christian-Trinity Episcopal rivalry may have worn off some to observers after the two schools renewed the rivalry last school year, but don’t tell that to those involved. And don’t say it is because there’s an awfully big incentive riding on the matchup when the two meet at 7:45 p.m. Wednesday in the first round of the Class AA South State tournament.

The loser’s season is over.

&uot;Every game you’ve got to get yourself pumped up for it, but this is all you think about,&uot; Trinity senior guard Zach Rogel said. &uot;I guess it’s just respect in the town you want to earn and you want to be the best in the town. You’re all friends, and you want to rub it in and makes jokes about it.

&uot;Everybody knows it’s a go-home game. Nobody wants to lose. The atmosphere is going to be great.&uot;

The ante is raised from all the previous times the two Natchez schools have met in football, boys’ and girls’ basketball, baseball and softball. This is the kind of situation many folks dreamed of when both schools were placed in Class AA following last year’s realignment.

If Trinity and AC would meet in the playoffs, they said, the place will be packed.

Even though both teams enter heading in opposite directions, that really won’t matter a bit. The Saints are the No. 4 team out of District 4, but the Rebels are coming in following winning the 3-AA tournament championship.

&uot;Even though Trinity is coming in as the No. 4 team, we still have to respect them and prepare for them,&uot; Adams head coach Kyle Smith said. &uot;They beat us twice out of two times this year. Our guys are excited about being able to play them. We’re playing pretty well right now, and I feel confident we have just as good a team as Trinity does. But they’re still going to be a good team.&uot;

The Rebels come in as the hotter team and may have revenge on their minds after dropping both games to the Saints during the regular season. The Saints took the first game at Trinity 59-43 and came back a week later to claim a 56-47 win over the Rebels at ACCS.

But that Trinity team had point guard Gervoni Ware, who had 21 points in the first game. And the Rebels were a team in search of an identity at the time.

&uot;We just want to go out and play a good basketball game,&uot; Trinity head coach David King said. &uot;Bottom line is it’s the same story as most nights &045; we’re playing a team with more talent than us. They’re playing their best basketball right now. Honestly, it looks like a mismatch on paper. Our kids will give 100 percent, and we’ll have to live with the results one way or the other. I’ve been in this business long enough to realize you can’t win every year.&uot;

What the Saints have done to get this far following the departure of Ware and his 20 points a game is definitely commendable, as is the Rebels’ rise to the district championship following a 2-8 mark in district. Adams Christian hit a stride just before the end of the regular season with a win over a good Parklane club and competed well against Brookhaven Academy.

From there the Rebels knocked off Riverfield, Prairie View and Copiah to claim the tournament title.

&uot;We beat Parklane for the second time this year, and that got us real pumped up,&uot; AC senior guard Ray Simpson said. &uot;Even though we lost to Brookhaven, we hung with them. We hung with Riverfield and started playing our game. We did what we had to do to get to where we are now, and we don’t plan on stopping.&uot;

The Saints have done it with Stevan Ridley being a force inside and others stepping up from the perimeter. Zach Rogel has put up double digits in scoring in recent games to take the load off Ridley, who is in the crosshairs of just about every opponent’s defense.

Rogel nailed five 3-pointers Saturday against Bowling Green.

&uot;Gervoni is tough to replace because he’s such a scorer,&uot; Rogel said. &uot;I’ll hit some shots, and Tripp Bryant is hitting some shots. I’ve been getting in the gym working on my shot, and Coach King has been helping me. If I get the shot, I’ll take it.&uot;

Points in this contest, however, may be at a premium. The Saints have gotten this far on almost defense alone, and the Rebels showed last week they can be extremely patient on offense &045; their first possession of the game against Riverfield lasted over a minute.

The Rebels, however, have gotten points out of each one of their five starters and will have Casey Gould and Timmy Foster down low against Ridley.

&uot;You can guarantee both teams will come out ready to play and prepared to defeat the other team,&uot; Smith said. &uot;We’re going to prepare for them the best way that we can. Ridley and Rogel are key players that we need to prepare for, as well as the others on the floor. It’ll be a good little matchup inside. One of our goals is to know where Ridley is all the time.&uot;

It’s matchups like that in a situation like this that will keep the intensity non-stop throughout the game. The winner may clinch an automatic berth in the state tournament, but for those involved, it could very well go deeper than that.

&uot;It’s going to be big,&uot; Simpson said. &uot;It’s a lot about we know they’re going to talk their stuff and we’ll talk our stuff. It never gets old playing them. It’s always a good rivalry.&uot;