By CURTIS ROCKWELL

BILOXI — The St. Martin boys picked up a much-needed win Saturday in the opening game of the annual Jackie Laird Classic at the Biloxi High Sports Complex.
St. Martin was one of a trio of “Southern Six” squads that picked up wins in the event.
The Yellow Jackets, under the direction of veteran head coach Charlie Pavlus, defeated Saraland, Al., 46-29 to move to 2-11 overall and snap a three-game losing streak.

Anthony Mora tallied a game-high 18 points to pace the Yellow Jackets to the win, while Ty’Lah Whitlock chipped in 10 points, pulled down a game-high 16 rebounds and had three blocked shots as well in an all-around impressive performance. Jax Walker scored eight points and had seven assists as well in the winning effort.
Mora was coming off a 20-point performance in a 50-40 loss to Harrison Central on Thursday night in Region 4-7A play, while Whitlock added eight points in that contest.

St. Martin’s only other win on the season came two weeks ago when the Yellow Jackets defeated Greene County 40-36 in overtime. R.J. Keys paced SMHS in that win with 14 points, while Whitlock added 12 points and Jax Walker had 9 points.
Both St. Martin’s boys and girls squads host Pass Christian Tuesday night.

In other action at the Jackie Laird Classic on Saturday, the host Biloxi team beat Davidson High of Mobile, Ala., 58-48. Dayshawn Mcgee scored 18 points to lead the way for the Indians in the win. Both Biloxi’s girls and boys teams were scheduled to host Blount High of Mobile Monday night.

Also, Vigor High of Pritchard, Ala., beat Gulfport 76-59 despite the Admirals getting 22 points from Amir Abdul Rauf. Next up for Gulfport is a trip for both the girls’ and boys’ teams to Petal on Tuesday night.
In the only game of the day that featured a pair of “Southern Six” squads facing off was the second game of the day as Picayune beat D’Iberville 54-42.
Picayune moved to a solid 11-2 overall with the win. The decision gave the Maroon Tide a pair of wins in less than 16 hours, after knocking off Long Beach Friday night in a Region 4-6A contest 62-42. The win also moved the Maroon Tide to 3-0 in league play.
Niquis Ratcliff, fresh off of an all-state performance on the football field for Picayue, led the Maroon Tide with a game-high 21 points against the Bearcats while Dakeith Quinn added 12 points and Brunson Stockstill had 11 points to put three players in double digits for Picayune. Sanchez Goss almost made it four in that category as he added nine points as well.
Wayne Ulrich led Long Beach with 12 points while Cade Ahrens added 10 points as the Bearcats dropped to 2-10 overall 0-3 in region play.
Picayune’s boys and girls squads were slated to host Forrest County AHS on Monday night. Next up for D’Iberville’s boys and girls is a trip to Moss Point on Thursday.
Both Long Beach teams were set to host Pearl River Central Monday night.