West Lincoln basketball coach Jason Case finds himself drawingdouble duty for the 2000-01 basketball season. Case will coach thevarsity girls and boys teams, instead of just the boys.

Case’s father, Jack Case, retired last spring and his35-year-old son inherited the varsity girls squad. The youngerCase, a 1982 West Lincoln graduate, is starting his ninth season asvarsity boys coach.

Assistant coach Randy Laird will direct the junior high teamsthis season.

West Lincoln makes its debut tonight, hosting Piney Woods for atripleheader, starting at 5 p.m. The varsity girls game starts at6.

The Lady Bears, 12-14 last season, were hit hard bygraduation. They lost All-Lincoln County playmaker Becky Smith,plus guard Holli Adams, center Sarah Byrd and forwards ChristyWilson an Emily Skates.

Top returnees are sophomore forward Hanna Roberts andsophomore guard Dana King. Both saw starting duty lastseason.

There is just one senior on the squad in forward RebeccaWallace Sophomore Hannah Payne is the team’s tallest player at5-11.

“Coaching the girls will be a learning experience forme,” Case admitted. “Our girls hustle and play hard. They have agreat attitude and they are scrappy.”

The Bears also find themselves in a rebuilding mode.Four seniors graduated, three of them starters. They includedplaymaker Bruce Smith, a 5-year starter who was named Most ValuablePlayer on The Daily Leader’s All-Lincoln County BoysBasketball Team; plus forward D.J. Branning and guard JeremyHughes.

Returning starters are 6-1 guard Jamie Sisco and 6-2 forwardCarlos Johnson. Sisco averaged 8 points per game last season as theBears finished 22-7, winning the division title but finishingsecond to St. Joe in the division tournament after Smith sustainedan ankle injury. Johnson should be a force on the backboards wherehe averaged 9 rebounds per game as a junior.

“Our boys team should be very versatile,” said Case. “We won’tdepend on two players. We have eight or nine who could be theleading scorer on any given night.”

The Bears have a foreign exchange student on the team thisseason. Juraj Drahos is a native of Slovakia.

“Drahos has good fundamentals,” said Case. “He has worked had onhis game and he’s a smart player.”

Varsity Boys Roster

SENIORS: Jamie Sisco, 6-1; Carlos Johnson, 6-2; AdamRushing, 6-2; Kalis Fells, 6-1.

JUNIORS: Cody Mitchell, 5-10; Juraj Drahos,6-2.

SOPHOMORES: Luke Lofton, 6-3; Eric Stewart, 5-9; SamCollins, 6-2; Dexter Adrair, 5-11; Matthew Wallace,5-11.

FRESHMEN: Brooks Smith, 5-11; Daniel Allen 5-7; LandonCase, 5-7; Shane Hughes, 5-7; Richie Freeman, 5-7; Kerry Brewer,5-7; Seth Brown, 5-7.

Varsity Girls Roster

SENIORS: Rebecca Wallace, 5-5.

JUNIORS: Holli Bass, 5-6; Jennifer Richardson,5-7.

SOPHOMORES: Hanna Roberts, 5-8; Dana King, 5-4; HannahPayne, 5-11.

FRESHMEN: Chastity Avants, 5-2; Lyndsay Franklin, 5-3;Kala Shaw, 5-3; Brandi Green, 5-3; Emily Richardson, 5-3; AnnaSmith, 5-3; Annah Andrews, 5-4.

West Lincoln Schedule

OCTOBER: 31, Piney Woods.

NOVEMBER: 3, At Mt. Hermon, La.; 6, Franklin County; 10,at Salem; 14, at Wesson; 17, North Pike; 28, at Brookhaven; 30,Lincoln County Round-Robin at Enterprise.

DECEMBER: 1-2, Lincoln County Round-Robin at Enterprise;8, Jackson St. Joe; 12, Wesson; 15, at Enterprise; 18, BogueChitto; 21, Loyd Star; 22, at North Pike.

JANUARY: 9, St. Aloysius; 12, Dexter; 16, at Loyd Star;19, at St. Aloysius; 23, Salem; 26, at Franklin County; 30,Enterprise.

FEBRUARY: 2, at Bogue Chitto; 6, at Jackson St. Joe; 9,at Dexter; 12-16, Division 7-1A Tournament at Dexter; 19-24, SouthState Tournament TBA; Feb. 26-28, State Tournament atJackson.

MARCH: 1-10, State Tournament at Jackson.