by Joseph W. Gex II, Contributing Writer

BAY ST. LOUIS (GG) — The Saint Stanislaus Rock-A-Chaws basketball team made huge leaps and bounds this year on the hardwood.  The Rocks (20-6) are currently preparing to play in the Class 3A state quarterfinals or commonly referred to as the Elite Eight.

SSC disposed of Franklin County 54-52 in a nail-biter on Saturday afternoon, February 15 at the Brother Peter Gymnasium in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi.
The Bulldogs (14-15) jumped out to a 14-11 advantage in the first period and extended that lead to 22-11 after an 8-0 run to start the second period. But the Rocks returned with an 8-0 run of their own highlighted by consecutive old-fashioned three-point plays by David Belle and Carter Macias.
Max Baria scored the final five points of the period for SSC as they went into intermission down 28-26.
The two teams battled basket-for-basket in the third period and Baria scored nine points in the period.   SSC took their first lead of the game with 6:18 left to play when Jason Forte laid one off the glass to make the score 44-42.
The Rocks closed the game on a 10-5 run to gain the one-possession victory.
SSC head coach Daniel Grieves commented, “Franklin County is one of the better organized 3A teams in the state. They play so hard and don’t shy away. We got off to a slow start but once we settled in we were able to attack one possession at a time. We had a short bench today and the guys played a lot of minutes. We need to recover, get back on the court and prepare for McLaurin.”
The Rocks were led by Max Baria with 28 points, 7 rebounds, and 3 blocks.
On Tuesday of last week, the Rocks topped Kemper County 46-39 after starting off slow in that game.  Baria scored 26 points, 9 rebounds, and 3 blocks.
Prior to the playoffs, the Rocks claimed the Division 8-3A title beating St. Patrick and West Marion. Alan Gilliam was named the Most Valuable Player while Baria earned Best Defensive Player.
This season has provided a lot of firsts for the Rocks including the first undefeated home schedule since 2011, the first division title since 2013, the first 20-win season since 2011, and the first trip to the Elite Eight since 2011. And, the glue that held the 2011 team together is now calling the shots for the Rocks, head coach Daniel Grieves.