By By Austin Bishop/The Meridian Star
Oct. 26, 2001
PHILADELPHIA Tournament director Willis Tullos says this year's Choctaw Classic lineup may be the best in the basketball event's five-year history.
That's a bold statement, for the classic which consists of 16 teams playing one game each has traditionally hosted some of the best girls basketball squads in Mississippi.
Two of the eight games which begin at 10 a.m. and are scheduled to be completed by 10 p.m. will featured matchups between teams ranked in The Clarion-Ledger's preseason poll.
The 4 p.m. contest features No. 6-ranked Wayne County taking on No. 9-ranked Noxubee County High School. At 7 p.m. No. 10-ranked Meridian High School collides with No. 7 Hancock. Sandwiched between those two games is host Choctaw Central ranked No. 13 taking on traditional power Vicksburg High School at 5:30.
An all-day ticket to the event is $5 and can be purchased at the door. The event is being held at Choctaw Central High School on the Pearl River Reservation and is sponsored by Chief Phillip Martin and the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians.
The action tips off at 10 a.m. when Louisville faces Velma Jackson. The 11:30 game features Kosciusko and Yazoo County, while Southeast Lauderdale and Coahoma County play at 1 p.m. and Forest and William-Sullivan tangle at 2:30 p.m.
The nightcap features cross-county rivals Columbus High School and West Lauderdale.
The only three teams that have played in all five Choctaw Classics are Choctaw Central, Meridian and William-Sullivan.