By CURTIS ROCKWELL/Sports Director

When Harrison Central travels to Biloxi for a key boys Region 4-7A showdown on Wednesday night, the Red Rebels will be counting on their leading scorer in the battle for the top spot in the loop.
Senior swing guard Aujaylen Barron is averaging just 15 points a game, but has blossomed recently after veteran Red Rebels head coach Boo Hardy moved the versatile 5-foot-8 standout to shooting guard after he filled the point guard role for HCHS the past season and a half.
After the move, Barron has registered scoring outbursts of 41, 34, and 26 points over the past four games for the Red Rebels.

“He’s a talent to have, that’s for sure,” Hardy said of his prize pupil. “He had been our point guard since becoming a starter last year, but he was getting double-teamed quite a lot and it was affecting his play. He was still doing a great job of spreading the ball around and playing solid defense, but we could always see that we could get more offense from him in the right situation. He’s certainly taken advantage of the move.”
And Red Rebels fans have to look no further than the squad’s last outing to see the results Hardy was referring to. Friday, on the road in Ocean Springs, Barron and his teammates trailed by double-digits at halftime 41-30.
However, Barron came out on fire in the third frame as he posted 18 points in the third quarter including four 3-pointers as he outscored the Greyhounds by seven points in the period.
The scoring outburst helped the Red Rebels outscore the Greyhounds 26-11 in the period and take a 56-52 lead into the fourth quarter. Barron then added 10 more points in the final frame, including making six free throws, as the Red Rebels held on for the win.
He never left the court all night and finished with a game-high 34 points for HCHS.

“To be on the smallish side, he’s really tough for his size and he competes hard all the time,” Hardy added. “He’s really stepped it up offensively recently, and on top of the that he always guards the other team’s best player. I’m just as proud of his defense as I am his offense.”
The recent explosion by Barron began in the championship game of The Gulf Coast Holiday Classic at the Arthur Outlaw Recreation Center on the campus of Springhill College in Mobile, Ala.
The Red Rebels captured the championship trophy at the event with a 67-63 win over Albertville (Ala.). In the title tilt, Barron poured in a career and game-high 41 points to pace the Red Rebels to the win.
He then followed that up with a game-high 26 point performance in a 74-59 road loss in Hattiesburg to Presbyterian Christian that snapped the Red Rebels five-game win streak.
“He’s becoming a complete player, Hardy said. “He brings a lot of toughness to his position, and he works hard. He also continues to get his teammates involved as well very night.”

In the win over Albertville, Barron got help from classmate Jonathan Pace, as the senior center scored eight points and pulled down a game-high 11 rebounds. Mickey Ducksworth also grabbed eight rebounds in the winning effort. Against Ocean Springs, Shaun Murray chipped in 15 points to the winning cause while Duckworth pulled down nine rebounds for the Red Rebels and Nehemiah Barnett had five assists.
Barnett took over the point guard duties when Barron swapped spots and has been instrumental in getting the ball in Barron’s hands at the right time.
Also, Barnett scored the game-winning basket in the waning seconds of play against Christian City High out of New Orleans in 52-50 win in the the semifinals of the Gulf Coast Classic, while Murray had a game-high 20 points in the 76-54 tourney opening win over Faith Academy.
“It’s been a team effort for sure,” Hardy concluded. “Aujaylen has been the key on offense lately but he gets a lot of help from different teammates every game.”
Harrison Central will be looking for a bit of revenge Wednesday night after falling at home to Biloxi 53-39 to tip off region play a little over a week ago. Since then, the Red Rebels have won eight out of 10 games including seven of their past eight contests as well as four straight league wins leaving them tied atop the Region 4-7A standings with Biloxi at 4-1.