No rolling over

By News Staff on Thursday, March 2, 2023
VPHS boys’ hoops starts playoff run in style
  • Ville Platte High’s Sage Papillion (23) drives to the net in the Bulldogs’ gritty 67-64 win over Red River in the regional round of the LHSAA Boys’ Non-Select Division III Playoffs. With the win, the team now travels to Port Allen in the quartefinals. (Gazette photo by Rhett Manuel)
    Ville Platte High’s Sage Papillion (23) drives to the net in the Bulldogs’ gritty 67-64 win over Red River in the regional round of the LHSAA Boys’ Non-Select Division III Playoffs. With the win, the team now travels to Port Allen in the quartefinals. (Gazette photo by Rhett Manuel)
  • Jakahalen Slaughter (10) keeps his eyes on the focused as he protects the basketball from going out of bounds against Red River. (Gazette photo by Rhett Manuel)
    Jakahalen Slaughter (10) keeps his eyes on the focused as he protects the basketball from going out of bounds against Red River. (Gazette photo by Rhett Manuel)
    By: RHETT MANUEL Sports Editor VILLE PLATTE – The road towards a state championship is never, ever easy. It takes talent, resilience and, at times, a little bit of luck. The No. 8-seeded Ville Platte Bulldogs are still on that road and one win away from qualifying for the state tournament in Lake Charles following an 83-63 opening round win over No. 25 St. James last Friday and a gritty 67-64 Regional round win over No. 24 Red River on Tuesday night. Next up for the Bulldogs is a quarterfinal road trip to top-seeded Port Allen scheduled for Friday night at 6:30 p.m. The story for that game will be in next Thursday’s edition of The Ville Platte Gazette. Ville Platte showed its ability to win in different ways in both games. In the playoff opener, the Bulldogs had junior guard Sage Papillion at the top of his game as he fired his way to a game-high 26 points, while against Red River the Bulldogs had to win by-committee as Papillion struggled to find his shot and managed only six points. The playoff opener against St. James was Ville Platte at the peak of its powers. The Bulldogs fell behind 11-4 in the opening minutes of the first quarter before Papillion put up seven of the next nine points to help his team finish the period on a 9-2 run to tie it up at 13 after one quarter. The first quarter struggles gave way to a blistering second period. The Bulldogs couldn’t seem to miss in scoring 28 points in the second frame alone and cruising to a 16-point lead at half, 41-25. That quarter was highlighted by a 16-2 Bulldog run that stretched the lead to 18 points, 39-21. The run was characterized by Ville Platte’s usual guard play, with all but four points in it coming from guards Papillion, Latelldrick Prejean and Jamarre Byers. By the end of the third, the Bulldogs maintained control and led 64-43. Sophomore Montavis Seraille, who finished the game with 17 points, put up nine in the third alone. With the game secured, Latravian Thomas showed out in the fourth period. He opened the frame with a pair of three-pointers that stretched the Ville Platte gap to 27 points. He spotted nine of his 17 in the final quarter with the Bulldogs taking as much as a 32-point lead before subbing out its starters. As easy as it seemed against St. James, Ville Platte had to fight for every inch of its second-round win over Red River. The traveling Bulldogs brought a different set of issues to the table. They hit four three-pointers in the opening frame alone, vastly outplaying Ville Platte on their way to a 20-13 opening quarter lead. That early margin plagued Ville Platte throughout the contest. Every time the Bulldogs battled back within striking distance, Red River seemingly found a bucket to stretch its margin. It was especially true in the second period after Byers four-point play helped Ville Platte close the gap to 27-22. Red River’s response? An 8-1 run that just as quickly put the lead back at 12 points, 35-23. Still, within the ebb-and-flow of the contest Ville Platte had closed the halftime gap to 39-34. Ville Platte’s resilience throughout the game were on the backs of Byers and Seraille, who each put up 19 points to pick up the slack of Papillion’s off-game. Ville Platte pulled within a point, 39-38, to start the second half. But, once again, Red River’s shooting output helped them maintain a 56-51 lead heading into the final quarter. Red River knocked down eight three-pointers in the contest, propelling its offense. However, all of those threes came in the first three quarters. Ville Platte’s defense won the game in the final quarter, holding Red River to eight points and throwing its offense off-balance. A Jakahalen Slaughter layup cut the lead to one point, 60-59, with 4:35 remaining in the contest. Seraille’s physicality around the basket secured a three-point play to tie the game at 6 with 2:23 left. A Seraille bucket with 1:10 left gave Ville Platte its first lead since a Byers three-pointer gave Ville Platte a 3-0 lead to open the game. Slaughter provided a crucial steal with 45 seconds remaining, with Thomas knocking down a pair of foul shots with 30 seconds left to give Ville Platte a 66-62 lead. Foul shooting proved crucial in the game, with Ville Platte attempting 24 free throws compared to Red River’s nine. Ville Platte knocked down 15 foul shots, providing a nine-point difference at the charity stripe that ultimately gave them the advantage.