By CURTIS ROCKWELL/Sports Director

BAY ST. LOUIS — Around two decades ago, Bay St. Louis resident Jason Forte was a steady force on the Southern Miss basketball team for four seasons.

Now, twenty years later, his son of the same name is settling into the same role as just a sophomore for St. Stanislaus.

The younger Jason Forte and his Rock-A-Chaws open the Class 3A South State playoffs at home at Brother Peter Gym Tuesday night against Kemper County.

St. Stanislaus is coming off of its first region championship in a over a decade, after dispatching arch-rival St. Patrick 53-35 Friday night in the championship game of the Region 8-3A Tournament in Leakesville. The win completed a perfect 10-0 march through the region race for SSC head coach Daniel Grieves and his troops. It was the first league crown for the Rocks since 2013.

Leading just 20-17 at halftime, St. Stanislaus took control of the contest as the third quarter unfolded by out-scoring the Fighting Irish 18-8 in the third frame. Forte had the hot hand for SSC in the decisive period as he dropped in seven points, including a 3-pointer, as SSC steadily stretched that aforementioned three point lead to double digits at 38-25 entering the final stanza.

Grieves was aware of the Forte family success on the hardwood from a young age.

“Our history goes way back to when big Jason was playing at Bay Springs,” he said, Monday afternoon after practice. “When my dad was coaching at Morton High, they were in the same district. I used to go to the USM camps when Jason was playing so he has known me most of my life. Now the tables have turned in a sense that I am now coaching his son which has been pretty cool to have that history. Little Jason, like his dad, has a motor that just doesn’t quit.”

The 5-foot-11, 155-pound Forte has burst upon the scene in his first year as a starter for the Rocks and provided not only a spark defensively but offensively as well as a complimentary piece to standout junior center Max Baria and his classmate and guard Alan Gilliam.

The 6-foot-5 Baria and the 6-foot-2 Gilliam have paced the Rocks in scoring throughout the season but Forte has stepped up big at times as well as his performance in the region title tilt proved when he posted a double-double with 11 points and a game-high 14 rebounds.

That performance came on his father’s 41st birthday.

“He is a coach’s dream because he takes every defensive assignment without question even when he is out-sized so it lets us play with four guards on the court,” Grieves added. “He is a tough kid and great competitor and several times this year we will check our box score and sure enough there is Jason with notches in every category for us. He is fighting for first place on our team in Double-Doubles even though he is still learning the pace of a varsity game as he is a sophomore with limited experience as a freshman.”

Forte is following in the steps of his father, who was a steady and effective force for the Golden Eagles from 2002-2006. He averaged eight points and five rebounds as a senior at USM. He played in an average of 28 games per season during his career.

Going into his senior season, his USM bio in the media guide said “Returns for his senior season after seeing considerable playing time his first three years … Very versatile player who adds depth in the backcourt and on the front line … One of the more athletic players on the team … The strongest player in the weight room.”

The 6-foot-5 Forte arrived in Hattiesburg after earning All-State honors as a junior and a senior at Bay Springs, where he averaged 27 points per game his senior season. He poured in a career-high 57 points in a game during his junior campaign.

He also went on to enjoy a 10-year pro career in the Continental Basketball Association as well as overseas.

The younger Forte hopes to have as much of an impact on the Gulf Coast as his father did in the northern Pine Belt.

“He has been a huge factor for us this season as teams try to focus on the likes of Baria and Gilliam,” Grieves continued. “Jason takes advantage of being overlooked and teams are quickly burnt by him time and time again. He was the catalyst for us extending our lead in the district championship. He is a smart and charismatic kid who is an even better person than he is a basketball player. His dad is extremely knowledgeable and we have a great parent-coach relationship. His father has trusted me to lead his son in this basketball journey since the seventh grade which is reassuring to me because he does have the college and professional experience on his resume.”

The Rocks roll into the state playoffs with a solid 18-6 overall record and have won 14 of their last 15 games. Forte’s emergence in the starting five helped SSC overcome a 1-4 start to the campaign.

“I always talk about the most important conversations in a program are the ones between the players and their parents at the dinner table,” Grieves concluded. “When the parents like Jason’s support me the way they do then it makes the players buy in. These two have been huge in the positive culture shift at Saint Stanislaus and I’m lucky to be a part of it.”