By CURTIS ROCKWELL/Sports Director

ST. MARTIN — An athletic event that hasn’t taken place in four decades will be renewed Friday afternoon here at St. Martin High School.
The SMHS boys basketball team will host Vancleave in a 1:30 p.m., matinee contest at the Yellow Jacket gym. It’s marks the first such contest for St. Martin since the mid-1980’s, according to head coach Charlie Pavlus.
Pavlus is now in his 17th season at the helm of his alma mater, and the day game is something he’d been wanting to bring back for quite some time.

“We thought it was a great opportunity to try and do something that hasn’t been done in a long time,” Pavlus said this week. “To be able to bring in a few hundred students to watch a basketball game during school hours is going to create an atmosphere that should be a memorable one. Our guys have been working really hard and hopefully they can perform at a high level with all of their peers watching.”
The SMHS boys stand at 6-2 overall after a 54-48 overtime win on the road over Long Beach Tuesday night.
R.J. Keys paced the Yellow Jackets with game-high totals at 18 points and nine rebounds. Point guard Jaxon Walker added 10 points, four steals and he dished out a game-high six assists. Terrence Allen had eight points and six rebounds, while Kai Veira had eight points and six boards also.
Andre Windham led Long Beach with 17 points while Donovan Magee and Naveah Smith added nine points apiece for the Bearcats.

Vancleave currently sits at 0-4 overall on the year and the Bulldogs are slated to face St. Patrick Thursday night before heading over the St. Martin Friday afternoon. Vancleave is also coming off of a game against Long Beach dropping a 48-42 decision to the Bearcats 48-42. Leroy Cameron tallied 15 points for LBHS in the win, while Windham added 14 points and Magee 13 points.
This will mark the second meeting already of the young season between St. Martin and Vancleave after the Yellow Jackets thumped the Bulldogs 58-11 to open the season.

“No matter what the outcome is, it should be a fun and exciting environment,” Pavlus added. “I’m just thankful that we have outstanding leadership at our high school in Principal Shea Scarborough and Athletic Director Jesse Kanode that allow us to do these type of things.”