Then both teams started make baskets. Valdosta State, who basically was non-existent to start the game, decided to make an impact and give Delta State a run for its money.

If it not for a late score by the Lady Statesmen, Valdosta goes into the half with the lead.

The second half should be interesting.

DSU needs to keep up the outstanding defensive play they had in the first half if they want a chance at claiming the victory.

Next up will be Hinds AHS (31-2) in the championship game Friday at 2:30 p.m. in Jackson.

Throw in the Delta State and Alabama-Huntsville match up at 7:30 p.m. and it should be an interesting Friday.

Nothing earth shattering took place. No big time, make you gasp questions.

Delta State coach Sandra Rushing was named the GSC West coach of the year for the fourth year. She is going for her fourth consecutive GSC championship and a second regional tournament played in Cleveland.

Talk about being consistent. I couldn't win four GAMES in a row if I wanted to.

Junior Chad Akins and sophomore Bug Cooper were both named to the first-team All-GSC as point guards. No surprises there as both of them have been key to their respective team.

Cooper leads the Lady Statesmen (easily) in assists with 237 (8.2 per game). She also leads the team in steals (55) and minutes played (936). She is fourth in points with 259.

Akins' stats are not much different than Cooper's. He leads the team in assists with 191, 37 steals, 681 minutes played.

That's a lot of minutes played. That's more than 11 hours playing in basketball games. The only thing I've ever done that long is...nothing, well maybe sleep 11 hours straight but that's another story.
The Lady Statesmen won't take to the court until Thursday. They will face the winner of Harding University and West Alabama.

Delta State has played both teams twice earlier in the year. The Lady Statesmen defeated West Alabama 67-54 and 63-38. They defeated Harding 71-42 at Harding and 71-57 in Cleveland.

The Statesmen will play Friday at 7:30 p.m. against Alabama-Huntsville, for the third time this year.

Whether that is a good thing or not has yet to be determined.

It's about the 1962 football season, the same year James Meredith came to Ole Miss. It centers on the first few days that Meredith enrolled at Ole Miss, but does go into detail about the full season and some seasons after the 1962, undefeated season.

If you're a fan of Ole Miss, or just football in general, you should read this now.

Here is the link to the story on ESPN.com
http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/eticket/story?page=mississippi62

The Eagles will await the winner of Taylorsville and Coahoma County for a 2:30 PM match up on March 2. Fans of Rosedale should hope Coahoma wins. The Eagles have played them three times already this year and know them very well. Taylorsville just lost the south half championship.

East Side lost its first game in nearly 10 games after losing to Corinth 67-61.

Tough loss for the Trojans who have easily defeated their two previous opponents in the state playoffs. They will be back in action Tuesday at 10:30 AM.

If my memory serves me right, I said Santonio Holmes would make a big play in the second half.

Does making the game-winning catch count as a big play? I think so. I believe his catch was a lot harder to make than David Tyree's helmet catch last year.

Watching the ball in the air, passing over two defenders, making the arm-extended catch, keeping BOTH feet in bounds and having a defender push you as you make the catch. That was the best catch ever in the super bowl (or at least that I have lived to see).

I didn't think Ben Roethlisberger was going to make that drive, but he did. Surprised me. Throw in all of the penalties and the long touchdown by Larry Fitzgerald, I thought Pittsburgh had no chance. Good thing I don't play for the Steelers.

Oh, I have two favorite commercials from the game.

First was the "remake" of the classic Coca-Cola commercial with "Mean" Joe Greene. I thought it was going to be an exact remake, but then the Coke Zero guys came in. I had to watch it again.

My second favorite was the E-Trade commercial with the baby talking about winning the skins game. "Shankopatomus" will be used on every golf course for the next couple of months. Plus the baby was wearing a Taylor Made visor made it that much better.

Congratulations to the Pittsburgh Steelers, six-time world champions.

The score should have been 14-10 (10-10 at the least) with the Cardinals on top, but Kurt "old man" Warner made a bad decision.

Larry Fitzgerald has only caught one pass. If Arizona wants to win the game (assuming they do) he will have to get the ball more.

Ben Roethlisberger is playing about what I expected. 11-for-14 for 130 yards is pretty good for him. The Steeler's run game has been decent (37 yards net), but considering the 10 by Arizona, they're doing just fine.

The only good news about being down 17-7 for Arizona is that they start the second half with the ball.

As for the commercials, some of them have been pretty good (Danica Patrick in the shower has been my personal favorite). Some have been pretty bad (the pedigree one with the exotic animals as pets).

Three things to look for in the second half:

1. Arizona will try to get Fitzgerald the ball more. Watch for the fade if they get near the end zone again.

2. Santonio Holmes will have a big play for the Steelers. He might end up being a candidate for MVP, but Harrison probably just won it.

3. Jeff Reed, the kicker for Pittsburgh. Check out his hair. Typical kicker.

First off, congratulations to Delta State men and women basketball teams for winning their respective games this past week. Especially the men who beat Arkansas Tech in overtime, in a game where Joe McCray earned himself the name Mr. Automatic for the night.

Some of the shots he made were incredible. The three-point shot in front of the Statesmen bench with a hand in his face was great. Then the pressure packed free throws to win the game.

I hope (as a Delta State student) that both teams can keep winning.

This week we have some good stories in the work. Along with sports, I'll be doing some news stories this week.

That should make one teacher who wanted me to get more, what's the word she used...diverse, very happy.

Unlike last week, I already know what my column will be on this week. A few items will be discussed, Delta State baseball being the main topic. Also I will give my thoughts on the Super Bowl. I'm still not convinced either way on who will come out on top.

The Steelers defense is great, but how good is the Arizona offense?

Can the old man (Kurt Warner) win another? I'll have to think about it for a few more days.

Anyways, that's it for now.

I might be back tomorrow. I might not. You'll just have to check back to find out.